If you are looking for a bankruptcy attorney in Glendale California, you may want to know a little bit about the bankruptcy process while you are looking. There is a bankruptcy court for each Federal judicial district in the United States and each state has at least one Federal District Court, with a total of 90 judicial districts that deal with bankruptcy across the country. Los Angeles are communities are served by the Central District of California which is one of the largest Federal District Courts in the United States.

But it you are considering filing a bankruptcy case, and you live in Glendale, California, you may want to know a little more than which court will hear your bankruptcy case. For example: What is the source of bankruptcy law and the process that makes it all happen? And will your bankruptcy attorney in Glendale be an expert that understands the law and the process of bankruptcy?

The United States Constitution authorizes Congress to enact “uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies.” (U.S. Constitution, Article I, Section 8.) Under this general authority to make laws on the subject, Congress passed a broad new set of Bankruptcy laws in 1978 known as the “Bankruptcy Code.” The Bankruptcy Code, which is found in Title 11 of the United States Code, has been amended since, with one significant set of amendments in 2005 known as the BAPCPA or the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention And Consumer Protection Act.

In addition to the Bankruptcy Code, the bankruptcy process is governed by the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure (referred to as the “Bankruptcy Rules”) and local rules established by each bankruptcy court in the various District Courts that are part of the Federal Court system. The Bankruptcy Rules provide a set of official forms that are used in bankruptcy cases. The Bankruptcy Code and Bankruptcy Rules (and local rules) provide the law and the legal procedure for handling bankruptcy cases and for resolving the debt issues for those needing the protection of the bankruptcy laws.

If you file bankruptcy, your case will be assigned to a bankruptcy judge. This is the court official with decision-making power over federal bankruptcy cases and he or she is a judicial officer of the United States district court. The bankruptcy judge may decide any matters connected with your bankruptcy case. This may include your eligibility to actually file a bankruptcy case or even whether you should receive a discharge of your debts. But don’t worry, because most of the bankruptcy process is administrative and it happens outside of the courthouse. For example, in most Chapter 7 cases the debtors never go to court. Instead, they interact through an administrative process that is handled by a trustee that is appointed to oversee the each case.

So this means that a typical chapter 7 debtor will not appear in court and will not see the bankruptcy judge unless an objection is raised in the case. And even if you need to file a Chapter 13 case, the typical chapter 13 debtor may only have to appear before the bankruptcy judge at a plan confirmation hearing one time. In most cases under Chapter 7, the only time a debtor must formally appear at a proceeding will be at the meeting of creditors, which is usually held at the offices of the U.S. trustee. You may hear lawyers refer to this meeting as a “341 meeting” because section 341 of the Bankruptcy Code requires the debtor to attend this meeting in case there are questions for the debtor about debts, transactions or and property.

This “process” of bankruptcy is well organized and will go very smoothly if you use an expert attorney for your case. Bankruptcy Law Center attorneys have filed thousands of bankruptcy cases and routinely represent residents of Glendale, California in the Los Angeles Bankruptcy Court system. Remember that the fundamental goal of the federal bankruptcy laws is to give you a fresh start and to relieve you from burdensome debts.