Home > Research Legal Advice > Bankruptcy / Chapter 7 > Benefits to husband and wife to filing separate chapter 7 petitions
Asked almost 5 years ago - Port Allen, LA
FlagMy husband owed a trucking business that was repossessed. It left us with thousands of dollars of debt and a 3 month late mortgage. Surprisely, the mortgage company did not begin forclosure process. To make matters worst, my husband moved out and did not provide any source of income. I filed chapter 7 bankruptcy becauses of the constand threats and limited income. I have about one month left before I am discharged. Now, my husband wants to file chapter 13 to at least saved the house for our children. Where does this leave me? I don't plan to vacate the filing because he has proven untrustworthy. Also, he doesn't live in the home. Can couples file different chapters? Does this make sense?
Yes, couples can file different chapters. If he wants to file a chapter 13 he can, but obviously there could be issues if the household income stated on his bankruptcy were different from yours, but the purpose is to save the house, so I can't imagine why the info would be different. There is no way the house can be saved under a chapter 7, but if you have a limited income as a couple, then I'm not sure that the chapter 13 will help very much either because you need the money to pay into the plan on top of current mortgage payments. But yes, it is possible to file separate chapters. If your husband doesn't live there, I'm not sure what benefit it is for him to file a chapter 13, unless he can afford to make the mortgage payments. If you are in the process of getting divorced, you probably should contact your divorce attorney (if you don't have one you should consult with one IF you are planning to get divorced) about this as well as your bankruptcy attorney.
I am very sorry to hear about all of the troubles that you have been having. You can't stop your husband from filing Chapter 13, and in fact if he succeeds in curing the real estate default, you and the kids stand to benefit. His Chapter 13 does not invalidate your Chapter 7, so don't worry about your Chapter 7 relief being vacated.
I hope things get better for you real soon.
You can real all about Chapter 13 by hitting the link below to my Guide.
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