Peter Geraci – Bankruptcy Attorney News – Peter Francis Geraci Law, call us at 800 CALL PFG

Meet Our Kentucky Team!

Meet Our Geraci Law Team in Kentucky!

Attorney Marc Affolter

Attorney Marc Affolter graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in History from Miami University, with a minor in Business Legal Studies. While in law school, he was the Managing Editor for the Journal of Legal Medicine, interned for Judge Paul P. Biebel, presiding Judge of Cook County’s felony courthouse and interned for the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office. While working for the Lake County State’s Attorney, Marc co-chaired a domestic battery jury trial and won. Attorney Affolter is beloved by clients with reviews ranging from “awesome,” “fantastic,” and a “pleasure to deal with.” In his spare time, he enjoys watching the Chicago Blackhawks and reading historical non-fiction.

Attorney Rob Brynjelsen

Attorney Rob Brynjelsen is a senior and supervising attorney at Geraci Law. He is responsible for managing attorneys in Wisconsin, and Indiana. Attorney Brynjelsen is licensed to practice in Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Kentucky, Ohio and Florida. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Philosophy from University of Illinois – Urbana Champaign and his Juris Doctor from University of Miami. He has advised on more than 10,000 consumer bankruptcy cases. He spends at minimum a few weeks a year visiting all of our Indiana and Wisconsin locations ensuring the Geraci Law standard throughout the Midwest.

Ryan Balmer

Ryan is the paralegal at the New Albany Indiana office and is ready to help assist folks in Indiana and Kentucky with the Bankruptcy process. He works to make the process hassle-free helping clients get the relief they need!

Dial 1-800-CALL-PFG for a free phone mini-consultation, or make an appointment online 24/7 at www.infotapes.com. Bankruptcy laws are in place to help you. Who knows bankruptcy like Geraci Law? Geraci Law has 35,000 5-star reviews since November 2016!

Read ALL ABOUT DEBT RELIEF at www.bankruptcybookbypeterfrancisgeraci.com.

Bankruptcy Can Help You Plan for Retirement!

Instead of paying credit cards, you should be paying yourself!

Check out this article written by Peter Francis Geraci and more articles at https://www.infotapes.com/articles!

Most Americans know nothing about bankruptcy law even though it is in the United States Constitution. They don’t know how to get rid of their debt. That is no accident, since all the financial education courses, when they are required in high school, deliberately do not teach anything about bankruptcy law. You can take my debtor education course by logging onto http://www.pfged.com, or more if you want to spend two hours getting educated.

One thing I teach in my debtor education course is that you should start worrying about retirement early. If you don’t have at least your annual salary saved up by age 30, you are not on track to retire by age 67 very few Americans have their salary saved up by age 30. Very few are putting 5000 or more into an IRA every year but a lot of Americans are paying 5000 in credit cards minimum payments every year.

So if your credit card minimum payments are $500 a month, that is 2% your credit card debt, is probably around 25,000. If you file a bankruptcy case, or chapter 7 for immediate discharge, or chapter 13 to repay with no interest, sooner or later you will have no credit card debt, and can put that 500 a month in an IRA you will have $6000 a year. That means in the next 10 years you will have at least $60,000, even if the IRA does not increase in value.

Some financial educators also say that by age 40 you should have three times your annual salary saved. Another rule of thumb is to multiply your living expenses at 25 to see how much money you will need to retire, and last 25 years in retirement. Here’s how that works: if your expenses are 2000 a month or 24,000 a year, five times that is about $600,000. So by the time you are 65 years old should have $600,000 saved. I can you possibly do that? Well if to save $6000 a year or 30 years just to get $180,000. But if you invested 6000 a year and a dividend paying stock, paid a 4% dividend, would get the benefit of compound interest, and possibly also an increase in the stock price, and over 30 years your money just might triple.

If you are paying $500 a month in minimums and credit cards you will pay the credit cards off in about 22 years. That’s a lot different than having hundred $80,000 in savings 20 years from now, isn’t it? That’s why people that file bankruptcy truly get a fresh start, if they take my debtor education course, they learn how to retire with the pension or IRA of at least $200,000. More information is at http://www.infotapes.com.

Read ALL ABOUT DEBT RELIEF at www.bankruptcybookbypeterfrancisgeraci.com.

Is There a Right Time to File Bankruptcy?

The answer is YES! If you are in debt and need help, NOW is the time to call us! You will review options with an experienced Geraci Law attorney to figure out a solution to your debt problem.

Geraci Law LLC was founded by attorney Peter Francis Geraci. Geraci Law filed more bankruptcy cases by far than any other law firm in the U.S. in 2015, over 13,000. We have counselled well over 100,000 clients. We don’t know exactly how many, but we are now on file 635,000.

We only practice in Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin, with about 30 offices, and over 100 total attorneys and staff. We specialize in consumer bankruptcy. We know the rules. We are easy to talk to and are always on your side. We are sympathetic. We may accept our fees in installments, and our fees are reasonable. We are interested in your future, and will give you advice based on over 100,000 past and present clients we have represented in matters similar to yours.

Peter Francis Geraci has been practicing law since 1974.

He says, “I have tried many cases before both juries and judges. I have tried every kind of case from murder to paternity, from civil rights to work injuries, from paternity cases to automobile accidents. My last jury verdict was $6.5 million in a birth injury case, and I won the appeal and collected another $1.2 million in interest for my client.

Geraci Law LLC files over 10,000 bankruptcies every year. Some of my clients have done 2 bankruptcies with me already. Some of their grandparents were my clients!

Since my practice is now concentrated in bankruptcy work, the only other cases we handle are injury claims. We refer all other cases to competent lawyers who specialize in other areas. There is an advantage to concentrating in a particular area of law.”

Read ALL ABOUT DEBT RELIEF at www.bankruptcybookbypeterfrancisgeraci.com.

Some Reflections on the Law of Bankruptcy

Letter from 1775 proves bankruptcy is as AMERICAN AS APPLE PIE!

Check out the article written by Attorney Peter Francis Geraci titled, “Some Reflections on the Law Of Bankruptcy.” Read the article below or this article and more at https://www.infotapes.com/Articles.

A year before the Declaration of Independence, the ability to file a bankruptcy case and get a fresh start was prized in America. This letter published in Connecticut, which enacted a bankruptcy law before the American Revolution, written in 1775, proves that. https://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/evans/N05906.0001.001/1:2?rgn=div1;view=fulltext

Among the pearls of wisdom in the letter, which hold true today, there is a common theme: “such a law would be beneficial to the publick, and analogous to reason and our holy religion” In other words, the bankruptcy laws of the United States, allowed by the U.S. Constitution Article I Section 8 that Congress has enacted, are BENEFICIAL, REASONABLE, AND SIMILAR TO HOLY RELIGION!

The letter starts out:

I shall consider this Act in the

FIRST PLACE, As beneficial to the Publick,
SECONDLY, Serviceable in general to the Debtor.
THIRDLY, In general, no Disservice to the Creditor.
FOURTHLY, Agreeable to Reason, and the Genius of our holy Religion.

Other colonies, such as Virginia, were also enacting their own bankruptcy laws. When the U.S. Constitution was enacted in 1787, the power to make a nationwide bankruptcy law was given to Congress. That is why bankruptcy is a Federal statute today, available in every state and U.S. Territory.

The letter points out the evils of not having a fresh start, debtors’ prisons they had in England, advantages to business with a good bankruptcy law, and quotes the Bible, which favors and commands the forgiveness of debt in many places:

of thy Brethren, &c. thou shalt not harden thine Heart, nor shut thy Hand from thy poor Brother;

but thou shalt open thine Hand wide unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his Need, in that which he wanteth:

If thy Brother be waxen poor, &c. then thou shalt relieve him, &c. that he may live.

If, says JOB, I have seen any perish for Want of Cloathing, or any Poor without Covering; if his Loins have not blessed me, &c. then let mine Arm fall from my Shoulder-blade, and mine Arm be broken from the Bone.

Whoso hath this World’s Good, and seeth his Brother have Need, and shutteth up his Bowels of Compassion from him, how dwelleth the Love of God in him!

My little Children, let us not love in Word, neither in Tongue, but in Deed and in Truth.

When we turn over the Pages of the sacred Volume, wrote from the Mouth of our Divine Master, and there observe the sublime Sentiments of Benevolence, Compassion, Forbearance, Forgiveness of Injuries, and Enemies, &c. enforced by the most powerful Arguments drawn from Life and Death, and the same exhibited in Perfection in his own glorious Person.

Read ALL ABOUT DEBT RELIEF at www.bankruptcybookbypeterfrancisgeraci.com.

Debt Surges and So Does Inflation

Geraci Law reports increase in pressure on retired workers!

Read the press release below from Geraci Law – you can read additional news @ https://www.infotapes.com/Press.

As if we can’t see it ourselves, the Federal Reserve reports that consumer debt levels increased 14% in March 2022. Credit card debt and other revolving debt increased by 21.4%.

Revolving credit, which includes credit cards, surged by 21.4%.

Food is up 10%, and gas is up 25% over a year ago. Pension payments have not increased, the stock market is down 20%, and social security payments are up only 5% or less.

At Geraci Law, we have seen this cycle before. Geraci Law is one of the oldest and largest debt relief agencies in the country, with roots going back to 1977. This data indicates that the cost of living will increasingly outstrip the ability to pay debt, in the coming months.

“It usually takes 2 years for consumers to realize they should eliminate or consolidate debt using either Chapter 7 or 13”, says Geraci Law founding member attorney Peter Francis Geraci.

“Bankruptcy filings are at a historic low, and borrowing is at a historic high, with the good feelings of a stock market bonanza all but gone.” Geraci Law is seeing an increase in Chapter 13 debt repayment plans filed by retired persons, and those approaching retirement. “Retirees and fixed income individuals are the canaries in the coal mine, the first to suffer from inflation and high debt repayments”, said Mr. Geraci.

Read ALL ABOUT DEBT RELIEF at www.bankruptcybookbypeterfrancisgeraci.com.

Are Unlisted Creditors Discharged in My Bankruptcy Case?

Read the article below or @ https://www.infotapes.com/Articles written by Attorney Peter Francis Geraci.

That depends. In the First Circuit and the Seventh Circuit, there are cases that talk about missing creditors that aren’t discharged unless the case is reopened to amend schedules to list an omitted creditor, but, at least in the 7th Circuit, that reasoning is rarely followed.

In Stark v. St. Mary’s Hospital, 717 F.2d 322 (7th 1983), the Seventh Circuit concluded that the decision of whether to discharge the debt of an omitted creditor is based on equity. The Stark court said the burden is on the debtor to show that law and equitable principles allow the reopening of the case to include the omitted creditor. Without such a showing by the debtor, the debt will not be discharged and the creditor will have a claim against the debtor, despite the previous order for discharge of debts.

This case has been criticized for suggesting that adding a creditor to a schedule has an effect on the dischargeability of the underlying debt. See In re Anderson, 72 B.R. 783 (Bankr. D. Minn. 1987).

The general rule in most jurisdictions is that a debt is either dischargeable or not based on the nature of the debt, and the nature of the status of the claims proceeding, and that reopening the case is unnecessary.

Even in the 7th Circuit, which is Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin, if the creditor has actual notice of some kind, such as you called and told them, or if “no harm, no foul” because the case was a “no asset case” and they would have gotten nothing even if they were listed, or if the creditor is really to blame because they sold the debt to someone else and didn’t tell them, the case does not have to be reopened at all. At Geraci Law, the issue rarely comes up.

Read ALL ABOUT DEBT RELIEF at www.bankruptcybookbypeterfrancisgeraci.com.

Credit Unions & Bankruptcy

Read the article from Attorney Peter Francis Geraci about Credit Unions and the difference in bankruptcy. This is why hiring an experienced attorney – matters. If you would like a free consultation, Geraci Law is here for you.

Credit Unions are Different than Banks in Bankruptcy

If you owe money to a credit union, they usually have a clause in their borrowing contract that any collateral you have given them, such as the car title, or a second mortgage on your house, is collateral for any other loans such as personal loans. It is what’s known as a cross-collateralization clause.

What is Cross-Collateralization?

Let’s say that you made a credit union loan for $3,000 and it was a personal loan and you had no collateral. Then you financed a car using a credit union loan, and you have $25,000 on that loan.

Look at your credit union papers when you made that vehicle loan. You don’t owe $25,000 on that loan; you owe $28,000, because there is a clause in small print that says any loan you have with them, is collateralized by the vehicle.

The Debt Can Stay If You Cross-Collateralize

Let’s say that you have a second mortgage with your credit union, and you take out a car loan, but then the car is wrecked and the insurance would only pay $15,000 but you owe $20,000. So the insurance pays the credit union $15,000 but you still owe $5,000. Since the car is destroyed, it is no longer collateral for the car loan, but since there is a cross-collateralization clause, you will pay $5,000 if it is secured by the second mortgage on your house. Even if you pay off the second mortgage, you have to pay off that $5,000 on the car loan, plus interest until you pay it off.

Do Credit Unions Debt Shame You?

Credit unions claim that they keep their interest rates are low because they have less losses than other lenders. One way they have less losses is by scaring you, and posting the names of anyone who causes them a loss, by not paying back 100% of what they owe, either on the credit union website or on a bulletin board at the credit union, or both. That is called “credit shaming.” It is pretty nasty, but it’s a fact of life with credit unions.

What if Your Credit Union Vehicle is Over-Financed?

So, under Chapter 7, if you have a vehicle and you want to keep it, and it’s financed by a credit union, they will want the vehicle back unless you sign up on the vehicle loan and any other loans you have with them. Under Chapter 13, they are a secured creditor on cross-collateralized loans.

Complications from Credit Union Debts

So, the most common case involving credit unions is that if you want to keep the vehicle financed by them, or you have a second mortgage financed with them, no other loans, it’s pretty routine: In Chapter 7 you reaffirm, in Chapter 13 simply pay them according to the contract terms.

The complication comes in where you have multiple loans with them and that’s something we can discuss with you, but please, go get a copy of each credit union loan so we can read the paperwork and see if there is a cross-collateralization clause. You can also stop by the credit union, and ask them for a copy of the papers and ask them if the loans are crossed with each other. Then you’ll know and can make an intelligent decision. Geraci law can help you make that decision.

Read ALL ABOUT DEBT RELIEF at www.bankruptcybookbypeterfrancisgeraci.com.

What Bankruptcy Can Do!

No one wakes up in the morning and says, “I want to file for bankruptcy!” It does not work that way. Life happens and more often than not you are in more debt with less income. Sometimes it’s as simple as bad luck – you get into a car accident 2 days after your insurance lapses, you start a new job and are in the hospital before health insurance kicks in. There’s divorce, life circumstance – things happen.

Thankfully, we have bankruptcy as an option to deal with the debt. Filing for bankruptcy can be the fresh start and breath of fresh air you are looking for. So what can it do for you?

Gets rid of as many bills as possible
Does not affect car payments if you keep the car and continue payments
STOPS all calls and letters from bill collectors.
STOPS interest on charge cards.
CLEARS credit report except for bankruptcy listing.
Allows you to INCREASE your credit score.
Helps you catch up on house and car payments.
Lowers interest on furniture and appliance payments.
Allows you to start a savings plan immediately.
STOPS garnishments and wage assignments.
NEVER pay another old debt again.
Clear up past due utility bills–only a deposit needed to restart service.
All negative credit reports before bankruptcy are cleared.
Accounts you have reaffirmed or paid are credit references in the future.

Read ALL ABOUT DEBT RELIEF at www.bankruptcybookbypeterfrancisgeraci.com.

Geraci Law is OPEN in South Bend

Geraci is open in South Bend and ready to help YOU with your debt! We’re located at 1251 N. Eddy Street in Suite 200 inside the Eddy Street Commons Building directly across from Starbuck’s. The entrance is between TIAA and O’Rourke’s Public House.

You can schedule online @ https://www.infotapes.com/Bankruptcy/OfficeLocator or give us a call. We can meet you in person, we can meet virtually – whatever is easiest for YOU!

Check out PFG in South Bend @ https://fb.watch/aKFXn9Poxe/

Read ALL ABOUT DEBT RELIEF at www.bankruptcybookbypeterfrancisgeraci.com.

Phony Websites posing as Bankruptcy Attorneys selling your information

Beware of “no name” “lead generation websites when search for Bankruptcy Attorney

You can read this article and more @ https://www.infotapes.com/Articles.

Any number of websites run by people who are NOT lawyers, are trolling for bankruptcy case leads to sell to unknown lawyers. “Lead generation” is when someone who could not get into law school, or didn’t want to, pays $15 for a name like http://www.wannafilebankruptcy.com, or http://www.needtofilebankruptcy.com, or http://www.greatbankruptcylawyers.com” or “bankruptcyrelief”, and makes it look like you are dealing with a bankruptcy attorney. You are not. You are giving your information to some unknown website. Almost always, the owner of the website is hidden. Some websites like this even use the ‘.org” extension, to make it look like they are a charitable organization.

So, the unsuspecting consumer, instead of landing on the website of a real live law firm or attorney that concentrates in bankruptcy, gives their info to a “lead generation” website, that promises to “connect them with a great bankruptcy attorney with lots of experience” or some such puffery. On top of it, this website may sell your information to some unknown attorney, or even more than one.

What happens next? You will get texts or calls from another person you have never heard of, who most likely will, again, NOT be an attorney, or even working for an attorney. It will be from a boiler room answering service trying to “set an appointment” to discuss debt relief. Again, with some law firm who is paying the “lead generation” website for “leads”. The leads are your information this caller wants from you.

Next, you may get an “appointment” with this “bankruptcy law firm or lawyer” who bought your “lead”. But it most likely will NOT be with an attorney. Are you already tired of this? If not, the “appointment” will be with another non-attorney person, possibly an actual employee of the attorney or law firm who paid for your “lead”. They will then tell you that the lawyer they work for can represent you, get money from you, and you will, if you pay them $2000 or so on the internet. Or worse yet, get involved in a Chapter 13 for the next 3-5 years with some unknown person who “bought your lead”. An example of this type of “lead gen” ethics is set forth in the opinions on Recovery Law Group, owned by Wajda ohttps://www.scb.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/opinions/Judge%20Burris/opn_85_20-03190_637737785894285410.pdf and Upright Law, owned by a Michigan lawyer named Deighan https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/national-consumer-bankruptcy-law-firm-agrees-pay-more-300000-relief-consumers-and-six-year The judges involved were quite direct in their criticism of these “internet wonders”.

Here’s what the South Carolina judge said about Nicholas Wajda and his Recovery Law Group:

“Recovery Law advertises itself on the internet as a business having offices located throughout the United States, including South Carolina. Recovery Law’s website lists its local address as 1014 Raleigh Ridge, Fort Mill, which is an apartment building. It is a domestic corporation formed in Nevada and is not registered to do business in South Carolina. South Carolina is one of the locations listed on Recovery Law’s website with the option to connect with a “local bankruptcy expert.” You can read the sad tale of a mishandled bankruptcy and Judge Green’s referral to the state attorney disciplinary commission, for yourself.

Read ALL ABOUT DEBT RELIEF at www.bankruptcybookbypeterfrancisgeraci.com.

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Credit Unions are Different than Banks in Bankruptcy

What is Cross-Collateralization?

The Debt Can Stay If You Cross-Collateralize

Do Credit Unions Debt Shame You?

What if Your Credit Union Vehicle is Over-Financed?

Complications from Credit Union Debts

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