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[kalrith]

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[Tobolo]

Did the bankruptcy judge remove your from the loan?

 

[tk149]

Caveat: I'm no expert - feel free to correct me.

If I recall correctly, you had to list all creditors with the court when you filed bankruptcy. If you didn't list the creditor you cosigned with, your debt is not discharged. I get the feeling that you did not.

 

[kalrith]

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[rasczak]

I cosigned on a loan for a relative 7 years ago, and then filed chapter 7 bankruptcy 2 years ago. If the relative defaults on the loan now (i.e. walks away from his mortgage), can the creditors come after me? Even if they can't come after me, will it still ding my credit?

Thanks!

Why not have the friend contact the bankruptcy lawyer and ask? I would think it was free to ask.

 

[PokerGuy]

Unless the debt was discharged as part of the bankruptcy, it's still an outstanding debt and you're still on the hook for it. I suppose there might be provisions for things that were missed as part of the filings, but I don't know how that works.

 

[EagleKeeper]

More than likely, it was not listed.

Unless one is actuallly paying on a debt or being harrassed for not paying; they will forget that they have it.

 

[Thump553]

Caveat: I'm no expert - feel free to correct me.

If I recall correctly, you had to list all creditors with the court when you filed bankruptcy. If you didn't list the creditor you cosigned with, your debt is not discharged. I get the feeling that you did not.

Win. Odds are it was listed-if their attorney did a halfway decent job. There is a special schedule for loan cosignors-that should have jogged their memory.

Even if it was not listed, there is the possibility (probably remote) of reopening the bankruptcy and adding this debt. Or there is the possibility that the creditor will just walk away from it once they are furnished proof of the bankruptcy discharge without raising the question as to whether they were listed.

Also, if the debt was a mortgage some states make it pretty dificult to get a deficiency judgment against anyone, cosignor or not.

 

[Don Vito Corleone]

Unless the debt was discharged as part of the bankruptcy, it's still an outstanding debt and you're still on the hook for it. I suppose there might be provisions for things that were missed as part of the filings, but I don't know how that works.

Actually (at least in the 8th Circuit, where I live and practice), a no-asset Chapter 7 filing, unlike Chapter 13, discharges debt whether or not the creditor is listed in the bankruptcy and/or notified. The logic is that the creditor is not prejudiced by not being notified since Chapter 7 doesn't involve setting up a repayment plan. I don't practice bankruptcy law and have no expertise in it - I just ran into this issue once when we were considering whether to pursue a collection against a former client who owed us money.

What I do not know is whether this concept of a Chapter 7 filing extinguishing all debts, whether listed in the bankruptcy or not, would apply to a mere cosigning situation, where the creditor has never called for payment by the cosigner prior to the bankruptcy filing.

 

[kalrith]

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[SphinxnihpS]

I'm actually asking this question for a friend. If what you say is true, then I guess I need to check with them and see if they listed the debt when they filed bankruptcy.

I would say your friend is an idiot for asking important questions of a friend who plans to post the questions on the internet and have them answered by a group of complete nitwits, rather than asking an expert.

 

[kalrith]

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