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over the meeting and to be responsible for the liquidation 
of assets.  With most smaller bankruptcies, only the person 
filing and the trustee will attend.  The trustee, who is 
usually a local attorney, will ask several questions about 
the information on the bankruptcy documents.  Call and ask 
the court clerk what papers you will need to bring (usually 
financial statements or sometimes even tax returns).  If a 
lot of property is involved, especially if it is nonexempt, 
property, your creditors may show up to protest any 
exemptions.  They may also attempt to grill you about your 
intent to pay the bill or about lying on your application.  
Answer truthfully and there shouldn't be a problem.   
If the creditors' attorneys become abusive, demand a hearing 
before the bankruptcy judge before the proceeding goes any 
further.  If the creditors object to any of your exemptions, 
they have 30 days after the creditor's meeting to file an 
objection with the court. The court will schedule a hearing 
and you will be given the opportunity to respond, although 
you don't have to.  A creditor may also try to claim a debt 
as non-dischargeable because of fraudulent acts, a @ or 
malicious act, or embezzlement or theft.  He can only 
accomplish this if he successfully raises the objection 
within sixty days of the creditors' meeting.  To defend 
yourself, you or your attorney will have to file a written 
response and be prepared to argue your case in court. 
Once all the requirements have been met and your intentions 
have been made clear, the court can declare the bankruptcy 
discharged.  No formal hearing will be held unless you have 
chosen to reaffirm your debt in which case the judge will 
want to be sure that you understand what you are doing.  
After this time, provided the creditors do not raise any 
objections, the dischargeable debts are erased. 
Picking Up The Pieces
Bankruptcy was once the lowest disgrace that could befall 
someone.  Today, however, it is commonplace.  Corporations 
declare bankruptcy to get out of contracts or avoid legal 
judgments.  Individuals rely on it to protect them from a 
society that extends credit too quickly.   
Bankruptcy does not mean that you will automatically be 
denied all credit for ten years.  In fact, many firms look 
at bankruptcy as a responsible way of discharging debts when 
there is no other way out. Creditors fear bankruptcy, but 
they also realize that if they lend to someone who has 
declared bankruptcy, they need not worry about another 
bankruptcy for seven more years (you can only file once 
every seven years).  If you happen to have a good 
explanation for the bankruptcy, such as medical bills, 
divorce, or some other catastrophic event, a creditor may be 
willing to overlook it and extend credit.  Ask potential 
creditors about their policy toward bankruptcies.  Their 
responses may be surprising. 

 
Divorce and Credit

The credit and money-related problems that can accompany a 
divorce used to primarily affect women.  However, many men 
are now confronting these issues because increasing numbers 
of women are pursuing successful careers and starting their 
own businesses.  Some women are now their family's major 
wage earner.  This economic clout means that in some 
households it is the wife rather than the husband whose 
income qualifies a couple for joint credit.  It also means 
that a growing number of women have the opportunity to begin 
their own businesses.  If their businesses fail, these women 
could create financial problems for their former spouses.  
No matter how happy your relationship, it is wise for both 
men and women to prepare themselves financially for the 
possibility of divorce. 
In this chapter I address some of the problems both sexes 
are likely to face after divorce, discuss how best to deal 
with these problems and tell you what can be done to avoid 
them. 
If you are contemplating divorce, it is important that you 
take certain steps before filing to help minimize any 
potential financial damage the change in marital status may 
cause, including: 
·	Make sure you have good credit separate from your spouse.  
If you do not, delay your divorce until you can get some 
credit and a bank account in your own name.  For advice 
about building individual credit, read Chapter 7. 
·	Pay all mutually shared bills and credit card debts from 
joint funds.  That way you do not risk the possibility of 
their becoming your own debt to be paid out of your own 
income once you divorce. 
·	If you already have either joint or individual credit, 
obtain a copy of your credit record from each of the big 
three and address any problems you may find. 
·	If some of the accounts in your credit file are joint 
accounts with negative histories, and if the adverse 
information is the fault of your soon-to-be-former spouse or 
the result of circumstances beyond your control, prepare a 
written explanation of the reason/s for the negative 
information, and ask the credit bureau to make this 
explanation a permanent part of your credit history.  Doing 
so may help disassociate you from the account's problems.  
It is also a good idea to attach the same explanation to any 
credit applications you complete. 
If you have a lawyer or a financial advisor you trust, talk 
with them about what you should do to prepare for the change 
in your marital status. 
Should your spouse file for bankruptcy while you are in the 
process of divorce, it is likely that the divorce 
proceedings will be stopped until the bankruptcy is 
completed.  During this time, talk with your lawyer about 
how to minimize the impact of your spouse's troubles on your 
financial situation. 
Accounts
Creditors consider spouses with joint accounts to be equally 
liable for those accounts.  Because of this, it is very 
important that you cancel all joint accounts as soon as 
possible.  If you do not, you run the risk that you will be 
liable for making payments on account balances that your 
former spouse ran up and cannot pay.  Furthermore, if your 
spouse is late making payments on joint accounts or defaults 
on those accounts, that adverse information will be 
reflected in your credit record as well as in your spouse's 
as long as those accounts are open.  You may then be faced