One of the primary purposes of bankruptcy is to discharge certain debts to give an honest individual debtor a "fresh start." The Bankruptcy Code will allow the debtor to keep certain "exempt" property; but a trustee will liquidate the debtor's remaining assets. Among the schedules that an individual debtor will file is a schedule of "exempt" property such as a car, household items and clothing, pension, life insurance, 401K and other retirement accounts, and your regular monthly income. Whether certain property is exempt and may be kept by the debtor is often a question of state law. The debtor should consult an attorney to determine the exemptions available in the state where the debtor lives.

An individual cannot file under Chapter 7 or any other Chapter, however, if during the preceding 180 days a prior bankruptcy petition was dismissed.

Filing a petition under Chapter 7 automatically “stays” (stops) most collection actions against the debtor or the debtor’s property. Between 20 and 40 days after the petition is filed, the case trustee (described below) will hold a meeting of creditors. The debtor must attend the meeting and answer questions regarding the debtor's financial affairs and property. 11 U.S.C. § 343. If a husband and wife have filed a joint petition, they both must attend the creditors' meeting and answer questions.

Generally, excluding cases that are dismissed or converted, individual debtors receive a discharge in more than 99 percent of Chapter 7 cases. The timing of the discharge varies, depending on the chapter under which the case is filed. In a Chapter 7 (liquidation) case, for example, the court usually grants the discharge promptly on expiration of the time fixed for filing a complaint objecting to discharge and the time fixed for filing a motion to dismiss the case for substantial abuse (60 days following the first date set for the 341 meeting). Typically, this occurs about four months after the date the debtor files the petition with the clerk of the bankruptcy court.

Every debtor is required to do credit counseling before filing for bankruptcy. The debtor is also required to take a financial management course before their debt is discharged. The Bankruptcy Code provides limited exceptions to the "financial management" requirement if the U.S. trustee or bankruptcy administrator determines there are inadequate educational programs available, or if the debtor is disabled or incapacitated or on active military duty in a combat zone.

If the debtor's “current monthly income” (1) is more than the state median, the Bankruptcy Code requires application of a "means test" to determine whether the Chapter 7 filing is presumptively abusive. Abuse is presumed if the debtor's aggregate current monthly income over 5 years, net of certain statutorily allowed expenses, is more than (i) $10,950, or (ii) 25% of the debtor's non-priority unsecured debt, as long as that amount is at least $6,575. (2) The debtor may rebut a presumption of abuse only by a showing of special circumstances that justify additional expenses or adjustments of current monthly income. Unless the debtor overcomes the presumption of abuse, the case will generally be converted to Chapter 13 (with the debtor's consent) or will be dismissed. 11 U.S.C. § 707(b)(1).

In addition, no individual may be a debtor under Chapter 7 or any chapter of the Bankruptcy Code unless he or she has, within 180 days before filing, received credit counseling from an approved credit counseling agency either in an individual or group briefing. 11 U.S.C. §§ 109, 111

A Chapter 7 case begins with the debtor filing a petition with the bankruptcy court serving the area where the individual lives.

Debtors must also provide the assigned case trustee with a copy of the tax return or transcripts for the most recent tax year as well as tax returns filed during the case (including tax returns for prior years that had not been filed when the case began). Married individuals must gather this information for their spouse regardless of whether they are filing a joint petition, separate individual petitions, or even if only one spouse is filing. In a situation where only one spouse files, the income and expenses of the non-filing spouse is required so that the court, the trustee and creditors can evaluate the household's financial position.

They must file: a certificate of credit counseling and evidence of payment from employers, if any, received 60 days before filing.

The filing fee for Chapter 7 is $299.

Between 20 and 40 days after the petition is filed, the case trustee (described below) will hold a meeting of creditors.

In order to accord the debtor complete relief, the Bankruptcy Code allows the debtor to convert a Chapter 7 case to case under Chapters 11, 12 or 13 (6) as long as the debtor is eligible to be a debtor under the new chapter. However, a condition of the debtor's voluntary conversion is that the case has not previously been converted to Chapter 7 from another chapter. One is not permitted to convert the case repeatedly from one chapter to another.

The grounds for denying an individual debtor a discharge in a Chapter 7 case are narrow and are construed against the moving party. Among other reasons, the court may deny the debtor a discharge if it finds that the debtor: failed to keep or produce adequate books or financial records; failed to explain satisfactorily any loss of assets; committed a bankruptcy crime such as perjury; failed to obey a lawful order of the bankruptcy court; fraudulently transferred, concealed, or destroyed property that would have become property of the estate; or failed to complete an approved instructional course concerning financial management.

Depending on individual circumstances, if a debtor wishes to keep certain secured property (such as an automobile), he or she may decide to “reaffirm” the debt. A reaffirmation is an agreement between the debtor and the creditor that the debtor will remain liable and will pay all or a portion of the money owed, even though the debt would otherwise be discharged in the bankruptcy. In return, the creditor promises that it will not repossess or take back the automobile or other property so long as the debtor continues to pay the debt. Unless the debtor is represented by an attorney, the bankruptcy judge must approve the reaffirmation agreement.

A Chapter 13 bankruptcy is also called a wage earner's plan. It enables individuals with regular income to develop a plan to repay all or part of their debts. Under this chapter, debtors propose a repayment plan to make installments to creditors over three to five years. If the debtor's current monthly income is less than the applicable state median, the plan will be for three years unless the court approves a longer period "for cause." If the debtor's current monthly income is greater than the applicable state median, the plan generally must be for five years. During this time the law forbids creditors from starting or continuing collection efforts.

Any individual, even if self-employed or operating an unincorporated business, is eligible for Chapter 13 relief as long as the individual's unsecured debts are less than $336,900 and secured debts are less than $1,010,650. The individual only needs to show a steady source of income.

A plan must be submitted for court approval and must provide for payments of fixed amounts to the trustee on a regular basis, typically biweekly or monthly. The trustee then distributes the funds to creditors according to the terms of the plan, which may offer creditors less than full payment on their claims. If the debtor wants to keep the collateral securing a particular claim, the plan must provide that the holder of the secured claim receive at least the value of the collateral.

The plan need not pay unsecured claims in full as long it provides that the debtor will pay all projected "disposable income" over an "applicable commitment period," and as long as unsecured creditors receive at least as much under the plan as they would receive if the debtor's assets were liquidated under Chapter 7.