Preparation is the key for success when filing bankruptcy in Florida. The best bankruptcy cases go unnoticed as debtors glide through the system without attracting attention to receive a full discharges in record time. Luck is not involved. Planning began months before filing.
The most successful filers know something that you don’t. Small lifestyle changes may alter means test income and expenses before filing. Well-planned strategic changes will have a dramatic effect on the results of the means test. With a few weeks or months to plan, creating $300 improvement on the bankruptcy means test calculation will save $18,000 in wasted Chapter 13 payments. Just as easily, many people avoid Chapter 13 altogether and may file Chapter 7 when understanding the test procedure. Timing is critical.
2010 Bankruptcy Strategies and the Means Test Explained
The Court provides online information via the internet through the federal PACER data base. This data base includes the Court's docket, debtors, case numbers, pending hearings, orders issued and many other items. Access requires payment of a fee when opening an account.
Claude Pepper Federal Building
51 S.W. 1st Avenue, Room 1517
Miami, FL 33130
Telephone No. (305) 714-18
U.S. Courthouse
299 E. Broward Blvd., Room 112
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301
Telephone No. (954) 769-5700
Paul G. Rogers Federal Building
701 Clematis Street, Room 202
West Palm Beach, FL 33401
Telephone No. (561) 514-4100
Office Hours: 9:00 a.m. 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, except holidays.
Website: Florida Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District
Counties Covered: Jurisdiction
The majority of courts allow either electronic filing or paper filing. A small number of courts only allow electronic filing. Likewise, a small number of courts only accept paper filings. The trend however is clear: all courts will eventually accept only electronic filing and will probably continue to accept diskettes at the clerk's office rather than requiring only online submission. The goal adopted by the U.S. Court system apparently requires the elimination of paper documents by 2010.
Back to Florida Bankruptcy Courts.
