Expert: Mark J. Markus- California Bankruptcy Attorney - 6/28/2008

Question
QUESTION: My wife and myself filed Chapter 7 Sept 05 and discharged Dec 05. A Credit Union we had a credit card with disputed the bankruptcy, we settled with them out of court. They reported to the credit bureau:

Oct 05, 30 days late
Nov 05, 60 days late
Then Dec 05 thru Nov 06 was KD (credit bureau terms:Key derogatory)

Is reporting negative information after a bankruptcy has been filed a violation of the automatic stay?

ANSWER: That depends on the terms of the settlement or whether there was a reaffirmation agreement entered into during the bankruptcy case.  Essentially, since this debt was presumably discharged in the bankruptcy, then you cannot--by definition--be late on any payments because you have no legal obligation to make the payments.   That's why the settlement agreement that you reference is key to the answer, I believe.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: The settlement agreement was paid in full with no late payments. The negative information is for the original account. Can they report negative information after bankruptcy is filed and continue to file negative information 1 year after

Answer
That I'm not sure of.  They can report it if it's accurate, and until you got your discharge, those lates were accurate.  However, it shouldn't really be affecting your credit score since the bankruptcy supersedes it.

Anyway, to answer your original question, it's probably not a violation of the automatic stay unless you can prove that they were trying to collect on the debt by indicating that you were late.  This is more of a credit reportion issue under the FCRA, so you may need to direct your inquiry to an attorney who specializes in those types of actions.  I don't see it as a bankruptcy issue.