Chapter 7

Chapter 7 is a liquidation type bankruptcy. Subject to a Debtor’s exemption rights and secured creditors’ interests, a Chapter 7 Trustee is appointed to collect assets of the estate, reduce those assets to cash, and make distributions to creditors. Statutory exemptions are generous and in many Chapter 7 cases, there are no assets for the Chapter 7 Trustee to administer. If requirements have been met, the Court will grant a discharge releasing liability on eligible dischargeable debts. A number of debts cannot be discharged through a Chapter 7 bankruptcy. The Chapter 7 process in most no-asset case typically takes three to four months from filing to discharge.