QUESTION
Can I be summoned by a payday loan company, years after filing for Chapter 7?
Asked on Apr 07th, 2017 on Bankruptcy - New Jersey
More details to this question:
In 2012 I was going through hardship financial crisis; I had no option but to resort to the payday loans in town. As many of you might know, upon taking out a loan they require you give them a blank check so that they can use that to withdraw funds when the loan is due to be paid back. I took out the loan, re-paid the loans and re-borrowed until I could no longer re-pay. Since the method of paying back was with my blank check they had on file. I got to the point where my bank accounts got closed, and I had no choice but to file for bankruptcy chapter 7. My bankruptcy cleared in 2014 and it is now 2017. I just received a very forward phone call from an attorney representing the payday loan company. He mentioned that I was being summoned for the account with the payday loan company, and they were filling felony charges against me for providing the payday loan company with a bounced check. I briefly explained to him that I had filed for chapter 7 and this account was supposed to be taken care of. The attorney said he knows the law better than I do, and that it doesn't matter if I filled for chapter 7. I still owe the company the money I borrowed from them and the fee for the bounced check. The attorney didn’t even care to hear me out and instead said "you can pay the balance to me over the phone and I'll drop all the charges" I said no, I will contact an attorney for feedback and he said "good luck in court, bye" What do I do? Obviously it got to the point where my check bounced because I no longer was financially capable of paying back and if they kept trying to run that check years later then yes my bank account would have been closed by then. I am so lost, considering I was just rudely misguided by a supposedly attorney who didn't even care to get a copy of my bankruptcy.
4 ANSWERS
This is a common scare tactic but it's unlikely to go any farther. Call their bluff and if they try to sue you, get an attorney to sue them for a violation of the bankruptcy stay.
Answered on Jul 06th, 2017 at 10:42 AM
This issue is handled differently in every state, so I recommend contacting your own attorney for advice rather than seeking online help. In Nevada, the public prosecutor takes the position that the payday lender knew the check was no good when they accepted it and the government is not involved in providing debt collection for these lenders. Had they wanted to complain, the time and place to have done this was when you filed bankruptcy under 11 USC sec 523.
Answered on Jul 05th, 2017 at 7:22 PM
Bankruptcy Law Attorney serving Livingston, NJ
Partner at
Law Office of Stuart M. Nachbar, P.C.
2 Awards
Provided that it (the payday loans) where prior to the bankruptcy and you listed the debts, you are fine. Bring a copy of the Petition and your discharge to any Court proceeding, and send the attorney a copy of same.
Answered on Jul 05th, 2017 at 7:21 PM
Bankruptcy Attorney serving Madison, WI
at
Richard B. Jacobson & Associates, LLC
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If you took out the payday loan before you filed for Chapter, and you listed it on your Ch. 7 papers, then in all likelihood it was discharged. In fact, if you inadvertently left them off your schedules, as long as it was truly inadvertent, and your Ch. 7 case was, like most of them, a 'no-asset' case, their claim was discharged also. Contact the lawyer you had, or should have had, in your Ch. 7. If you had none, try to find the name and address of the lawyer who called you, and the name and address of the loan company, and draft up your own motion to have them held in contempt. OR, you could wait for them to contact you again-which is not very likely-and get the information. Then talk to a lawyer who is skilled in Bankruptcy work.
Answered on Jul 05th, 2017 at 7:21 PM