Can I keep my tax refund?

Timing is very important when considering bankruptcy and during the tax season one aspect of timing is when to file in regard to when one will be receiving their tax refund. This is one of those fact driven determinations where no one answer can be given in a general post like this, so be sure to consult with an attorney about your particular situation. What is surprising to many, though, is that even though they have not yet received their refund check, it is an asset of a bankruptcy estate. This is because they have already earned the money prior to filing a Chapter 7. So, if one files a Chapter 7 today and then receives their refund next week, the trustee can take that money to distribute to creditors.

Here is where making a decision on filing gets a little more complicated. Each person has certain exemptions they can use to hold onto property and assets through a Chapter 7 bankruptcy. If you have sufficient left over exemptions to cover your tax refund, then it does not matter if you file before or after receiving it. However, if you do not have spare exemptions, but you still really need to file a Chapter 7 soon, then it would be best to try and get that refund before filing.

Now, it becomes important to use that refund money carefully to keep from getting on the wrong side of the trustee or the bankruptcy code. The guiding idea is to use it for necessities for your family and NOT to pull one over on creditors. You cannot use it to buy luxury items (there is a specific dollar amount limit in the code) and you cannot use it to pay one creditor over others. You can use it to buy necessities. For example, stock up on food stuffs and if your clothes are getting threadbare, get a few items of clothing but be REASONABLE about it. If you have children, get them some school clothes if they actually need them. Do not get fancy clothes – just basic items. In doing this, you are basically converting non-exempt cash into exempt personal property. You could also use the refund to pay for the bankruptcy. AGAIN: Consult with an attorney regarding your particular situation and plan and do not blindly apply these general principles to your particular situation because there are limits to personal property or household items exemptions.

Adoption statutes require strict compliance

Adoption can be an expensive proposition and I have been asked on occasion if a person can do their adoption pro se (on their own and without a lawyer). Actually, this question tends to come up in family law matters in general far more than in other areas of law. I hear this question about self-representation even less often in bankruptcy where folks clearly are in dire straits financially. My response is typically yes, you can but . . .. Then I relate to them a show I saw on Discovery or TLC about a man who was out hiking and became trapped when a boulder rolled onto his arm. He would have died out in this ravine had he not amputated his own arm with a pocket knife (the tv show assured me this was a true story). Anyway, in this graphic and slightly grotesque story the man did what he had to do to survive, but it had to be exceedingly painful and extremely messy. Representing oneself in a family law matter can be just like that: exceedingly painful and extremely messy.

That answer seems to ring intuitively true for people in divorce situations, but many assume that since an adoption is a happy occasion and that judges love putting families together rather than tearing them apart, that one could handle it without a lawyer. The contrary is actually true. In the recent Kentucky Court of Appeals decision R.M. v. R.B., 2008-CA-001099-ME, (2009, to be published), the Court reminds us that “[b]ecause adoption is a statutory right, Kentucky Courts require strict compliance with the statutory procedures to protect the rights of natural parents.” The statutory framework for adoption contained in KRS 199 has many “if, then” kinds of provisions requiring careful navigation even by seasoned adoption attorneys. Because of this strict compliance requirment, adoption is the least likely area of family law where one should proceed pro se. At the very least, consult with an attorney that is knowledgeable in adoptions to see if there are any “boulders” in your particulare situation that need to be dealt with.