Legal Question in Bankruptcy in Wisconsin

Second Bankruptcy Discharge for Past Filers--How Many Years Between Filings

Before a second (or subsequent) Chapter 7 bankruptcy discharge can be granted, eight years must have passed from the date the previous case was filed with the court. Presumably, the filing date can be sooner than eight years, if timed correctly to guarantee that the discharge date will be later than eight years. Discharge under other chapters is also effected, including a similar six year waiting period between chapter 13 discharges. This time limit can be shortened under certain circumstances. Subsequent filings are also not always entitled to the same "automatic stay" of collection lawsuits, garnishments, repossessions and foreclosures, depending upon the debtors’ past filing history. Special attention is therefore always required for subsequent filings and the debtor should always be represented by experienced bankruptcy counsel in such matters. In fact, the new code is so loaded with unforeseeable traps and pitfalls that no filing should ever be attempted without representation by an attorney who is a bankruptcy expert. If you have trouble in your location in finding an attorney with proper credentials, you should ask your clerk of bankruptcy courts for a list of attorneys who have served as bankruptcy trustees for your court in the past--they will nearly always have far more extensive experience that any attorney without this past service on their resume. These new time limits are products of the Oct. 2005 bankruptcy reform law, and the attorneys and judges who administer it are still in the process of fully figuring out what it means.