Bankruptcy annulmentMost people are afraid to file for bankruptcy since their financial situation might get a rise in the near future, so there’s apparently no need for such exceptional measures. However, very few know that there can be a way back out of bankruptcy due to debt – and this article will describe it in detail.
In what cases can a bankrupt debtor apply for an annulment? You can try to get a bankruptcy annulment if any of the following conditions may be applied to you:
1) You think your bankruptcy order to be illegal (for instance, the court didn’t follow the legal process of filing your bankruptcy, etc);
2) You have paid off or settled all your debts that served as the reason for filing for bankruptcy and paid all the fees you had been charged with during your bankruptcy trial;
3) You have settled your debt with the creditor and signed an “individual voluntary arrangement” stating your liability on the debt account.
Applying for a bankruptcy annulment The following section of this article describes the full process of applying for a bankruptcy annulment. There are three different algorithms for each of the bankruptcy cases listed above.
1) If you think your bankruptcy order to be illegal, keep up the following algorithm:
- ask the clerk of the court that has been dealing with your bankruptcy for an annulment application form;
- make an affidavit listing the reasons why you consider your bankruptcy to be illegal (provide all relevant facts or the witness’s testimony – both of which should be either sworn on oath or affirmed in the presence of a solicitor).
- mail the annulment application form and the affidavit to the court judge or pass it to him/her in person. The hearing concerning your annulment application will be scheduled – make sure that you don’t fail to show up in the court when the stated day and time come. You should also inform the Official Receiver (the person who has petitioned for your bankruptcy) and/or the trustee (in case one was appointed in the place of the Official Receiver) about the date of the bankruptcy annulment hearing. Make sure that you give them enough time to get ready for the hearing – and supply them with copies of your annulment application and affidavit;
- get ready to pay off the full amount of the bankruptcy fees right after the hearing. The court may also charge your opponent with these expenses but you have to posses some reserve money in case it all comes the wrong way.
2) If you have paid off or settled all your debts that served as the reason for filing for bankruptcy and paid all the fees you had been charged with during your bankruptcy trial, keep up the following algorithm:
- get an annulment application form from your court clerk;
- make an affidavit or a verified witness testimony stating the amount of your assets and debts you were due to at the date of bankruptcy, and all the payments that you have made in relation to these;
- pass the affidavit or witness testimony to your judge. The bankruptcy annulment hearing will then be scheduled. Make sure that you notify your Official Receiver or your bankruptcy trustee about the hearing at least 28 days before it is held. You should also provide them with the copies of your affidavit and/or written protocol of your witness testimony;
- make sure that your Official Receiver or your trustee responds your request with the confirmation of your debt payout and comments upon your conduct in the bankruptcy.
3) If you have settled your debt with the creditor and signed an “individual voluntary arrangement” stating your liability on the debt account, keep up the following algorithm:
- there will be a creditors meeting called by your insolvency attorney;
- if your creditors accept your settlement offer, go ahead and apply for the bankruptcy annulment (the application cannot be made earlier than 28 days after the protocol stating the results of the creditors meeting is sent to the court);
- you can either make the bankruptcy annulment application yourself or let the person supervising your individual voluntary arrangement make it. Basically, the procedure of composing the application is the same with the one described under the numbers 1) and 2), except for the fact that your affidavit or witness testimony protocol should state that you’ve managed to reach an individual voluntary agreement with your creditors.
Can a debtor skip any appointments with his/her Official Receiver after he/she applies for bankruptcy annulment? The debtors are not recommended to miss any appointments with their creditors since there’s a possibility that the court will not agree to cancel their bankruptcy until the Official Receiver confirms that all the information necessary for him/her was provided.
Is there any way to stop the debtor’s bankruptcy order from being announced to third parties? Yes, there is. However, a debtor who doesn’t want his bankruptcy to be advertised widely should immediately ask the court for a “stay of advertisement” in case he/she is willing to apply for bankruptcy annulment in the near future. If you want to apply for a stay, contact both the court and your Official Receiver stating this decision of yours immediately.
What advantages and disadvantages can the bankruptcy annulment bring to the debtor? If a bankrupt debtor gets his bankruptcy annulled, he/she will automatically revert to the financial status he/she had before the bankruptcy order was announced. However, you should be aware of the fact that none the property withdrawn from the debtor as the result of a bankruptcy order will not be returned to him/her. All other assets will be reversed though. Nevertheless, the debtor will again be announced liable for all his/her debts that he/she didn’t manage to pay off during bankruptcy.
|
