Jacob D DeGraaff's Answers

Can Sallie Mae place a lien on my property without first going to court and obtaining a judgment?

Due to relatively recent reforms to the law, Sallie Mae and other lenders can collect via garnishment without going to court and obtaining a judgment. They must give you notice prior to the garnishment and the opportunity for an administrative hearing if you request one. This maximum garnishment amount under this provision is 15% of your paycheck, and unlike judicial garnishments, it continues indefinitely until the loan is paid in full or some other action intervenes (like you negotiate a...

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Can i get garnished from two different places at the same time? and one f the documents have my maiden name on it not my married

If it is a private creditor who is garnishing your wages (as in not the IRS), they will generally take 25% of your wages until they are paid in full. Other creditors will essentially "get in line" to garnish your check, since no more than 25% can be taken at any one time. If you are facing multiple garnishments, you may want to consider consulting with a bankruptcy attorney. Most garnishments can be stopped by filing bankruptcy.

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Default Judgment, now what can we do?

You can always try to negotiate a settlement. However, there may not be much incentive for the creditor to settle at this point since they can take the judgement forcibly (by garnishment). Make sure you get a settlement agreement in writing with the creditor, or you risk them taking your "settlement" payment and continuing to pursue you for the remainder. If this debt is from prior to your marriage, it is his separate debt and they cannot collect from your half of the community property....

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If I am about to file bankruptcy, and some cards are through my bank, can they hold any of my deposits?

Yes, they can take the money from your accounts to pay their own debts under the bank's right of setoff. If you are behind on your credit card payments, I would advise that you open an account at another bank (one that you have no debts with) as soon as possible and keep no money in your current accounts. Be sure to bring up these issues with your bankruptcy attorney.

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Can I save money during bankruptcy?

You are allowed to continue making retirement contributions during the repayment plan. You should begin this before you file so your plan payment will be reduced accordingly. There is no easy way for you to save (non-retirement) once you are in the payment plan since the plan is designed to pay all of your "disposable income" to creditors. You should speak with an attorney to plan the best way for you to accomplish your goals without causing any problems in your bankruptcy case (or *gasp*...

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I filled a Chapter 13. What happens to my mortgage after the 5 year term is over? I will still owe money on the house.

If you complete your chapter 13 plan and receive a discharge, your mortgage should be current at that point. You will continue making regular mortgage payments for the term of the loan ( or face foreclosure if you fall behind on payments) just as if you had never filed bankruptcy. However, if you do not reaffirm the mortgage debt, you will not be held personally liable for the debt should you later lose the house in a foreclosure.

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Student Loans & UE Overpayments

Student loans can almost never be discharged in bankruptcy. In a chapter 13, any unpaid balance on your student loans would still be owed after the rest of your debts are discharged. As for unemployment benefits overpayment, these can be discharged to a certain extent in a chapter 7 or 13. After your debts are discharged, this debt cannot be collected from you but it will be set off against any future benefits you receive. One exception to this is if the overpayment was due to fraud on...

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Bankruptcy and Driver's License

Government fines, including traffic tickets, generally cannot be discharged in bankruptcy. You can file a chapter 13 (which is a repayment plan) to discharge your other debt and repay your tickets, and this may be a good plan to get your license back, but if your goal is to end the suspension of your license you should consider non-bankruptcy options as well. If you enter a payment plan for each of the debts, you can lift the suspension on your license without paying it in full first. You...

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What type of legal representation should we seek to try to get our money back? Investment fraud? bankruptcy/debt collection?

I would first of all suggest that you keep in contact with the prosecutor in Mr. Healy's case. If criminal fraud is proven as to your case, Mr. Healy should be ordered by the court to pay restitution. You should consult with a debt collection attorney to try to recover for you, but keep in mind that if Mr. Healy doesn't have any of your or anyone else's money left, there isn't much a collection attorney can do. Also, if you receive a notice of bankruptcy for Mr. Healy, see an attorney...

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What are my options?

What you are describing sounds like a set-off. If the credit card was with the same bank you have your account with, this is perfectly legal and very common. If it was a different bank, the only way the credit card company can normally get any money from your account is by obtaining a judgment and an order to garnish your account (you would have been sued, and you didn't mention this in your question so I assume this is not what happened here).

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