QUESTION
Why are spouses pay check stubs required for a non-filing spouse, especially if filing is exempt from "means test"?
Asked on Aug 15th, 2017 on Bankruptcy - Wisconsin
3 ANSWERS
1 Award
The court can still look at the "totality of circumstances" when granting a chapter 7 discharge even for non-consumer cases where means test does not need to be done. If a person is living with a millionaire and could easily pay off all the debt, then the judge has the authority to not grant a discharge.
Answered on Oct 23rd, 2017 at 10:26 AM
Bankruptcy Attorney serving Madison, WI
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Richard B. Jacobson & Associates, LLC
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Why not call your trustee and ask him or her? Very likely it has something to do with your spouse's potential liability on claims against you. Do you live in a community property state!
Answered on Oct 23rd, 2017 at 8:27 AM
Commercial & Bankruptcy Law Attorney serving Powell, OH
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Ronald K. Nims
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Being exempt from the means test doesn't make the debtor exempt from the good faith requirement. Good faith means that the debtor isn?t abusing the bankruptcy process. For example, Hillary Clinton was making hundreds of millions a year selling her influence to foreign governments prior to the 2016 election while Bill Clinton had virtually no income. Both of them live a lifestyle of extreme opulence, private jets, limos, several mansions, bodyguards, and servants. The good faith requirement stops Bill Clinton from getting a bankruptcy discharge because bankruptcy is intended for people in financial difficulty not for the plutocrats.
Answered on Oct 23rd, 2017 at 8:27 AM