The base belief held in bankruptcyi law is that if you are generally an honest person but have gotten in over your head and no longer have the ability to repay the debts that you owe, you should be given a chance to make a fresh start. This is done by discharging your debts via a bankruptcy proceeding.

Not all debts can be discharged. The following debts will not, generally, be discharged:

• Taxes (State and/or Federal)
• DWI related liabilitiesi
• Court ordered fines that are a result of criminal conviction.
• Child Support
• Spousal Support
• Federally guaranteed student loans
• Debts related to prior bankruptcy proceedings
• Debts that you acquired due to willful and/or malicious misconduct.

Expect your creditors to take the required actions to reclaim any property that was used to secure your debts, such as vehicles and houses. If you wish to keep such property you will need to ask the creditori to reaffirm your agreement with them. In such a case, that debti will be excluded from the bankruptcy proceeding.

Keep in mind that there are alternatives to bankruptcy. For example, you might want to try a debt consolidation program.