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The Petition

Learn about the petition, the document that formally commences a bankruptcy case, and how petitions may be either voluntary or involuntary.

Transcript

In the hit TV comedy The Office, hapless manager Michael Scott finds himself in financial trouble, and his employees advise him to declare bankruptcy. Michael resists at first, but as his financial woes deepen, his resolve wavers. Finally, Michael stands up in his office, spreads his hands, and says with a loud voice and great authority, “I . . . declare . . . bankruptcy!”

Michael’s oral declaration was sincere enough. Unfortunately, though, it had no legal effect. To formally declare...

Lessons

    • 1. Welcome to Bankruptcy
    2. Foundations of Bankruptcy
    3. The Estate and the Automatic Stay
    4. Creditors, Claims, Discharge, and Priority
    5. Chapter 7 Liquidation
    • Chapter 7 Panel Trustee
    • Distribution of Estate Property in Chapter 7
    • Discharge in Chapter 7
    • Personal-Property Collateral in Chapter 7
    • General Grounds to Dismiss a Chapter 7 Case
    • Introduction to the Means Test and Dismissals or Conversions for Abuse
    6. Debt Adjustment in Chapter 13
    • Eligibility to File for Chapter 13
    • The Estate in Chapter 13
    • Introduction to the Chapter 13 Plan of Debt Adjustment
    • Terms Permitted in a Chapter 13 Plan
    • Chapter 13 Confirmation Requirements: Treatment of Secured Claims
    • Chapter 13 Confirmation Requirements: Treatment of Unsecured and Priority Claims
    7. Preferences
    • Introduction to Preferences
    • A Transfer to a Creditor or for a Creditor's Benefit Made for or on Account of an Antecedent Debt
    • A Transfer Enabling a Creditor to Receive More Than It Would in Chapter 7
    • The Net-Benefit Rule
    • Contemporaneous Exchanges for New Value
    • Transfers in the Ordinary Course of Business
    • Subsequent New Value