Legal Question in Bankruptcy in Georgia
My mother has two loans in her name that were taken out for me - a student loan and a car loan, both taken out over 10 and 5 years ago, respectively. I send her money each month to pay these loans.
Since the loans are in her name, and not mine, would these be considered "family/personal" loans that I need to disclose in Chapter 7 bankruptcy? I honestly would rather not tell her I am considering filing for bankruptcy, given the reaction that will ensue.
Thank you for your help.
2 Answers from Attorneys
If you have any obligation whatsoever to pay the money, written or not, it is an obligation you must disclose. Not only do you sign and state under penalty of perjury that you included all creditors, an undisclosed debt to a family member would call for more scrutiny. Assume the Trustee or someone else will see the payments.
You are asking, whether you realize it or not "Can I commit a serious felong punishable by a fine in the hundreds of thousands of dollars plus five years in prison, plus denial of my bankruptcy discharge?" I realize that you didn't intend that, but let me stress that bankruptcy law requires full and complete disclosure of all actual and potential obligations. You will have to list those obligations to your mother, and she will get notice, and the bankruptcy will wipe out your legal obligation to your mother (assuming you do chapter 7).
Note also that any payments you made to her recently, and even over the past couple years, will also have to be reported, and the trustee may sue her to recover some or all of that money. In other words, your mother will possibly have to turn that money over to the trustee.
Your question makes it apparent you do not have a lawyer, as any bankruptcy lawyer would have given you this answer. Pro se bankruptcies are usually disasters, so you need a lawyer.
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