In a Chapter 7, your debt is being discharged, but your co-signers debt is not. This is because a Chapter 7 completely wipes out most debt (with certain exceptions). In that case, your co-signer will be responsible for repaying the full value of your loan.

In a Chapter 13, you are re-organizing your debt. That is, you are working out a payment plan that will include a portion of your loan. In that case, your co-signer will most likely not be responsible for repaying your loan.

It is important to evaluate your case fully to determine what rights you have toward third parties when you file for a Bankruptcy. Being fully informed about your options is the first and most important step in your journey. Our New York and New Jersey Bankruptcy Attorneys will guide you through each step, not only making sure we answer your questions, but ensuring that you are asking the right questions.

If you have a credit card and had a zero balance on it for the past 6 months or more than you may be able to keep that card since you only have to report liabilities – however, if a card had a high balance and you paid it off in anticipation of the bankruptcy, then this is illegal, and either that payment will not be discharged or the whole bankruptcy will be denied.

There is also another option, you can always reaffirm the debt and agree with a certain credit card company that you will keep paying the monthly payments. However, this option is not guaranteed and you will usually end up with a higher interest on the card.

You can always apply for a secured card after the bankruptcy which will build your credit and make obtaining new cards in the future, easier.

For example, a negotiated debt-settlement is one functional alternative to bankruptcy. In a debt settlement, an organization contacts creditors to arrange a plan to minimize monthly payments. In addition, a good settlement organization will minimize total debt as well as interest payments.

However, one must be careful in choosing a debt-settlement company, as there are many companies claiming to negotiate your debt, but will take your money and perform minimal services. That said, debt comanies do provide leverage as the emotional nature of this type of negotiation makes it very difficult to talk to a risk manager

Should our clients want to proceed with negotiating themeslves, we need to arm them. For example, to even consider debt settlement one needs to have access to a lump sum of cash to make a down payment. They need to have to patience to deal with harassing phone calls and letters and be prepared to commit to at least several years of monthly payments at a high interest rate. But if debt settlement is the way to go and bankruptcy is not an option, you may be able to save your credit score and avoid Chapter 7.

The company, based in Edison, New Jersey, filed for the protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Trenton, court records showed.

The company, which has production plants in Colorado, listed debts of $10 million to $50 million and assets of between $1 million and $10 million.

Biodiesel producers have suffered in recent months as prices for soy, the main U.S. feedstock for the alterative fuel, have soared. Soy prices hit a record of over $13 a bushel this week on global demand for vegetable oils for food and fuels.

Still, surging oil prices and government incentives helped the biodiesel industry to triple to about 250 million gallons in sales in 2006, the latest year for which statistics are available.

By comparison, U.S. ethanol industry capacity recently topped 7.5 billion gallons per year. The U.S. government offers $1 per gallon in incentives for biodiesel, which can be blended into motor fuel and heating oil.

Earlier this month, Imperium Renewables, Inc, the largest biodiesel producer on the U.S. West Coast, withdrew its plan for an initial public offering, citing unspecified unfavorable market conditions.

Late last month, Imperium Chairman and CEO Martin Tobias left the Seattle-based company. No explanation was given for his departure.

U.S. Bioenergy did not immediately return phone calls about the filing. (Reporting by Timothy Gardner; Editing by Christian Wiessner)

After bankruptcy code reforms in 2005, fewer companies have exited Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Some critics in the legal profession have argued that Chapter 11 is no longer as useful a tool to reform companies.

But in comments at Fordham University on Tuesday, Chief Judge Stuart Bernstein of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan said that even though Chapter 11, which governs reorganizations following bankruptcies, has become more “creditor-friendly,” it gives companies tools and breathing room to fix their businesses.

“Chapter 11 provides a lot of tools to a debtor to streamline its operations, and get rid of unproductive assets,” Bernstein told Reuters after his talk.

Though Bernstein declined to directly speak of a possible bankruptcy filing by carmaker General Motors because the case could land in his court, he did say bankruptcy law provides many tools, though it’s not obvious they can be easily used.

“As a general matter, you’d have to abrogate a collective bargaining agreement — but that’s easier said than done and it can cause a lot of litigation,” Bernstein said. (Reporting by Phil Wahba)

The company, based in Edison, New Jersey, filed for the protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Trenton, court records showed.

The company, which has production plants in Colorado, listed debts of $10 million to $50 million and assets of between $1 million and $10 million.

Biodiesel producers have suffered in recent months as prices for soy, the main U.S. feedstock for the alterative fuel, have soared. Soy prices hit a record of over $13 a bushel this week on global demand for vegetable oils for food and fuels.

Still, surging oil prices and government incentives helped the biodiesel industry to triple to about 250 million gallons in sales in 2006, the latest year for which statistics are available.

By comparison, U.S. ethanol industry capacity recently topped 7.5 billion gallons per year. The U.S. government offers $1 per gallon in incentives for biodiesel, which can be blended into motor fuel and heating oil.

Earlier this month, Imperium Renewables, Inc, the largest biodiesel producer on the U.S. West Coast, withdrew its plan for an initial public offering, citing unspecified unfavorable market conditions.

Late last month, Imperium Chairman and CEO Martin Tobias left the Seattle-based company. No explanation was given for his departure.

U.S. Bioenergy did not immediately return phone calls about the filing. (Reporting by Timothy Gardner; Editing by Christian Wiessner)