Your Bankruptcy Attorney Will Fight To Help You Keep Certain Possessions For These Reasons
Posted on: 13 February 2019
One of the difficult and oftentimes heart-wrenching parts of declaring bankruptcy is having to lose some of your possessions. Creditors will frequently evaluate what you own that is of value, and the law will allow them to take many of these items to sell in order to offset some of what you owe them. Giving up on items that you own and perhaps have owned for years can be difficult, which is why you need to immediately consult a bankruptcy attorney should you find yourself in this situation. Often, a bankruptcy attorney will be able to fight to help you keep certain possessions based on these grounds.
Necessity
It's probable that you have a number of possessions that hold value, but that you need. A prime example is your personal vehicle. It is difficult for a creditor to seize this item and sell it because your attorney can easily argue that you need the vehicle to seek employment opportunities or to care for your family. There are other things in your home of this nature, and while it might be tougher for your legal representative to successfully argue about their necessity, he or she will try. For your part, you'll need to make a convincing argument about which items you need, versus those that you simply want.
Sentimental Value
One of the most challenging situations in a bankruptcy case is the potential of having to part with an item that holds sentimental value to you. Many items have both financial value and sentimental value, but a creditor will only be looking at the former. For example, you might have some china dishes that have been in your family for generations. If a creditor estimates that they have considerable financial value, he or she will campaign to take them and sell them. Your attorney can fight on your behalf to prevent you from having to surrender these items on the grounds of their sentimental value.
Disputed Value
There may be cases in which a creditor believes that something you own is of significant financial value, and thus wants to take possession of it. You may dispute this amount and wish to keep it. Your attorney can get involved by accurately ascertaining the value of the item with the help of an industry expert, which may make the difference in allowing you to keep the item in question.
Before you hand over any possessions to creditors, speak to a bankruptcy lawyer.
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