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Bankruptcy Law/chapter 13/ income tax return

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Expert: - 3/20/2009


Question
My husband and I filed chapter 13 bankruptcy back in 2008.  We were ordered to send our income tax return to the trustee.  We have had about $1200.00 in car repairs in the last month, and we do not have the funds available to pay our property tax.  Can we ask to keep our income tax return to help pay for these expenses?

Answer
You need to discuss this with your attorney.  Most Chapter 13 plan orders require submission of tax refunds if you are paying less than 100% to your unsecured creditors.   If you have more expenses than you allowed for on Schedule "J", you may need to do a motion to modify (lower) your plan payments so that you can afford to continue in the Chapter 13.

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Mark J. Markus- California Bankruptcy Attorney

Expertise

Mark J. Markus is a Los Angeles bankruptcy attorney who has practiced exclusively bankruptcy law in California since 1991 and is rated A+ by the Better Business Bureau and is AV-rated by Martindale-Hubbell. He represents debtors, creditors, and Trustees in Chapter 7, Chapter 11, and Chapter 13 of the bankruptcy code throughout California.

Experience

Visit our California bankruptcy webpage at http://www.bklaw.com for more information on bankruptcy in general and Mark J. Markus in particular. Many questions are answered on the web page (hint, hint).
The Markus webpage also contains more information on

  • Which Chapter to File,
  • business bankruptcy,
  • chapter 7 bankruptcy,
  • chapter 11 bankruptcy,
  • chapter 13 bankruptcy,
  • Do You Need a Lawyer to File Bankruptcy?
  • Frequently Asked Bankruptcy Questions

    Also visit our Los Angeles bankruptcy blog for interesting articles and much more.



    Organizations
    Central District Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys Association (CDCBAA) Los Angeles County Bar Association (LACBA) Commercial Law & Bankruptcy Section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association Financial Lawyers Conference (FLC) National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys (NACBA) Los Angeles Bankruptcy Forum (LABF) American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI) San Fernando Valley Bar Association (SFVBA)

    Publications
    Central District Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys Association Newsletter September 2007 (Vol. 1, Issue 2)

    Education/Credentials
    J.D., University of Arizona 1990. B.A. Economics, California State University, Northridge 1986. For more details please click here

    Awards and Honors
    AV Rated by Martindale-Hubbell (http://www.martindale.com) A+ Rated by Better Business Bureau

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