I want to keep my car and pay that bill. But I want to discharge my IRS & state back taxes owed and medical bills. Do I file chapter 7 or 13?

In this case, the discharge of your debts does not depend on which chapter you file.  Your decision as to which chapter will be based on your income, expenses and other factors. Taxes are not dischargeable in bankruptcy unless they meet very specific criteria.  Income taxes are dischargeable only if all of the following prerequisites are met as of the date your bankruptcy case was filed: (1) it has been more than 3 years since the returns were last DUE (including extensions) to be filed, (2) the returns were timely filed or it has been at least 2 years since the returns were filed, (3) there was no fraud involved or attempts to evade the tax, AND, (4) the taxes were not assessed within the last 240 days. You need to have a consultation with a bankruptcy attorney in your area to assess your options and decide the best path. Mark J. Markus, Attorney at Law Handling exclusively bankruptcy law cases in California since 1991. http://www.bklaw.com/ bankruptcy blog: http://bklaw.com/bankruptcy-blog/ Follow Me on Twitter:  @bklawr