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Bankruptcy Law/selling during a bankruptcy

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Expert: - 1/21/2008


Question
well i bought a pick up from a private party and when i went back to get the title with my final payment and the he told me that i would have to wait 6 months for him to pay off his bankruptcy before i could get the title i guess his pick he sold me was involved in the bankruptcy is there any thing i could do to get the title or was i suckered? can you sell thing that are involved in the bankruptcy? i dont know what to do

Answer
I am very sorry that you have such trouble over this! Without reviewing the bankruptcy file, and investigating this, I can't really know how best to advise you. I would also have liked to know how much time has gone by, how much money was involved, and if you had a written agreement. Was the other person willing to let you return the truck and give you back your money immediately?

Hopefully this can be worked out amicably. The bankruptcy court expects good faith from the people who seek relief, and selling you something when he doesn't hold the title is strong evidence that he is using the bankruptcy system for an improper purpose. A person in your position could go into court and seek to have the bankruptcy case tossed out and seek an order for the return of your money. However, doing all of that is an expensive process, and time consuming.

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Los Angeles Bankruptcy Lawyer Leon D. Bayer

Expertise

Leon Bayer has successfully represented clients in bankruptcy for over 30 years. He is frequently called upon by the media, the California Bar and other associations to provide insight and help educate attorneys on bankruptcy issues. If you or other readers want to keep up with my blog postings about life in and out of bankruptcy, you can follow my blog at http://www.bankruptcyblogger.org/ and my personal web site at http://www.debt-relief-bankruptcy.com and A Human Guide to Bankruptcy at http://www.thebankruptcyguide.net/ Leon also writes about bankruptcy law for Nolo, see http://www.nolo.com/law-authors/leon-bayer.html and his "Ask Leon" bankruptcy law blog column at http://blog.nolo.com/bankruptcy/

Experience

Leon is a Certified Specialist in Bankruptcy Law by the State Bar of California, and has been a practicing bankruptcy lawyer in Los Angeles, California for 33 years.

Organizations
National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Lawyers, California Bar Association, Los Angeles County Bar Association.

Publications
Author, ?The Essentials Of Chapter 13,? Daily Journal Report, December 18, 1987.
Contributing Editor, Basic Bankruptcy, California Practice Handbook, Matthew Bender 1992, 1993.
CEB Consultant, CEB-Personal and Small Business Bankruptcy Practice in California, 2003.


Education/Credentials
B.A., J.D.

Awards and Honors
President, 1995-1996-Los Angeles Bankruptcy Forum; Member - Los Angeles County Bar Association Committee on Commercial Law & Bankruptcy, 1988. Law Advisory
Commission-Personal & Small Business Bankruptcy Law of the State Bar of California, 1996-2000

MR. BAYER SAYS: The big banks and credit card companys have been working overtime for many years to undermine the Consitutional right of the American people to be able to claim bankruptcy protection. In 2005 the banking lobby successfully convinced Congress and the President to make the laws and proceedures more complicated, hopeing that it will stymie legitimate people from filing bankruptcy. They succeeded in gaining these complex new legal proceedures by greasing the legislative system with hundreds of millions of dollars in "campaign contributions." The good news for the American people is that while the new laws have made the proceedures needlessly complex to the point where inexperienced people can't help but trip over the maze of new rules and regulations, the process is still doable, especially with a lawyer who is well trained and experienced in this specialty.

Past/Present Clients
I have probably handled something on the order of about 15,000 bankruptcy cases thropughout my career.

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