People who have been in a serious accident often find themselves unable to work, with bills piling up, and they may begin thinking about filing bankruptcy. If you find yourself in this position, it’s important to know that bankruptcy creates terrible problems for people with injury cases. As experienced injury lawyers, this is our advice:

1. Don’t file bankruptcy! You and your injury attorney will lose the ability to obtain a good settlement. Instead, the bankruptcy trustee will make the settlement decisions, and his goal will be to settle for enough money to pay your bankruptcy creditors, not to compensate you for your injuries.

2. If you’re still thinking of filing bankruptcy, talk to your injury attorney first. Your bankruptcy attorney is not going to know, or care about, the details of your injury case, or how bankruptcy can hurt your chance to obtain fair and just compensation for your injuries.

3. If you file for bankruptcy and your case settles, you will not get money right away, and you will probably then get no more than a tiny amount. Normally, when your case settles, you get the money quickly. But if you filed for bankruptcy, the trustee will take your settlement and use it to pay every creditor you have, including credit card companies, the IRS, school loans, and all the rest of your bills. You are likely to get only a very small amount, called a “homestead exemption” payment.

4. You have to list your injury case when you file bankruptcy. The trustee will run a public records check, and if you have not listed your injury case, your bankruptcy will be thrown out of court “with prejudice,” so that you cannot refile it. You will then have no choice but to pay your all creditors in full. Not listing your injury case can also lead to criminal charges and a large fine against you.

5. If you are having financial problems after a serious injury accident, tell your injury attorney. He may be able to speed up your settlement, and at least can tell you what you must disclose in bankruptcy and how it will affect your settlement.

If you don’t have an injury attorney, and you have been seriously injured in an accident that was not your fault, please call us, Stokes & Kopitsky. We know that victims of serious injuries often have financial, medical, and emotional problems, and they may not be able to work, or even to find work, after they are injured. We are highly experienced Atlanta injury attorneys and we are here to help.

Our telephones are answered 24/7 and our consultations are free. We advance all costs, and there are no fees unless and until we obtain a settlement or court award for you. Please call Stokes & Kopitsky toll-free at 1-800-700-5050 for the experienced, highly qualified legal help you need for a serious injury case.