Unpaid accounts are a headache for business owners, large and small. Worse are those customers unable to pay due to bankruptcy proceedings. Running a business is a balancing act, leveling salaries and facilities against merchandise and services. For even the largest companies, an unpaid account can bring it crashing down.

Hodges, Doughty & Carson, PLLC works with diligence and tenacity in protecting the financial interests of our clients. Whether a large financial institution or a small business, our collective experience will help secure your assets from those in bankruptcy. If your debts are in question due to a debtor’s bankruptcy, please call us at 865-292-2307 to set up an initial consultation.

The Eastern District of Tennessee Bankruptcy court estimates nearly 1,000 new bankruptcy cases were filed each month this past year. Unfortunately, Tennessee led the nation in 2014 bankruptcy filings according to the American Bankruptcy Institute. Over 6 new bankruptcy cases were filed Per 1,000 Tennesseans. With statistics like that, it seems only a matter of time before, as a creditor, bankruptcy will touch your balance sheets.

The variables of bankruptcy change depending on the type of bankruptcy your debtor filed. Hodges, Doughty & Carson, PLLC has decades of experience to guide creditors through the process, be it Chapter 7, 11, 12 or 13 bankruptcy proceedings. No matter the nature of bankruptcy, our team will exhaust every avenue in securing unpaid assets.

Tennessee Bankruptcy Negotiators

Negotiations are key in resolving bankruptcy disputes. Several attorneys at Hodges Doughty & Carson, PLLC are certified Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 31 negotiators. This rule allows disputing parties to resolve outstanding issues through mediation outside the Court. The results of this mediation are binding and private. Rule 31 negotiations are perfect for businesses, banks, or financial institutions seeking payment of debts but are wary of disclosing the specifics of their operations. Without stepping foot into a courtroom, Rule 31 negotiators at Hodges, Doughty & Carson, PLLC can help resolve bankruptcy disputes. Rule 31 negotiations can also keep the more sensitive aspects of your day-to-day business practices from the public record.

For those cases where negotiation isn’t an option, Hodges, Doughty & Carson, PLLC will zealously protect creditors’ rights. Bankruptcy is often a game of financial cat-and-mouse. It’s in the debtor’s best interests to shuffle assets into exempt and protected classes or transfer assets to relatives or other close friends. Understanding this logic through exhaustive practice can mitigate the negative effects on what you’re rightly owed. Hodges, Doughty & Carson, PLLC have the experience to see such fraudulent conveyances and act accordingly.

Financial Protection For Creditors

Filing deadlines in bankruptcy cases are often short and iron-clad. Hiring a qualified attorney is vital. Instead of spending your precious time studying filing procedures and Tennessee bankruptcy law, our seasoned lawyers can navigate filings and procedure with ease. Especially when it comes to protecting creditor’s bankruptcy rights, prompt timing can help maximize future judgments.

Hodges, Doughty & Carson, PLLC can file liens following judgment and pursue other post-judgment collection activities on your behalf. These important steps are vital to pursue property and assets owned by the debtor. Our experience at Hodges, Doughty & Carson, PLLC can help ease the anxiety that comes when bankruptcy throws the ledgers out of balance. Timely filing can prevent the debtor from reshuffling assets out of your reach.

Debtors often attempt to legally discharge their debts during the bankruptcy process. Discharging a debt frees them from repayment of that debt during the bankruptcy process. Discharging a debt also bars creditors from contacting the debtor in any way regarding the discharged debt. Some debts, such as , debts obtained by false pretenses, false financial statements or fraud are non-dischargeable, but prompt action to assert those claims must be taken or they will be forever lost.. The lawyers at Hodges, Doughty & Carson, PLLC know to pursue these claims in order to obtain a ruling by the court that the debt is non-dischargeable..

Luxury items purchased by credit or debts owed as part of a divorce settlement are an excellent example of debts which can be declared non-dischargeable. Though it’s well within a debtor’s legal right to discharge the loan on his recently purchased sport convertible, prompt action by a skilled attorney can prevent such a claim. Theankruptcy lawyers at Hodges, Doughty & Carson, PLLC work with skill and tenacity to protecting your creditor claims during bankruptcy.

Our seasoned lawyers also will guide you through the process of valuation. In Chapter 7 and 13 bankruptcies, some of the debtor’s property may be the subject of a dispute as to value, and value can be a key issue, especially in chapter 7 cases. Our combined experience at Hodges, Doughty & Carson, PLLC can help to ensure the proper assessment of the value of a home or car. A low value means less money paid back to creditors. A fair value may provide creditors with more money than they would otherwise receive if value was not contested.

In Tennessee bankruptcy proceedings, debts are either secured or unsecured. Advance planning by creditors can result in the creditor holding a secured claim against the debtor’s property and that property can be liquidated to satisfy the debt. However, it is important to understand how to obtain secured status in a way that will survive any bankruptcy contest by other creditors or the bankruptcy trustee. The attorneys at Hodges, Doughty & Carson, PLLC can guide you through that process.

Even for an experienced creditor or a large financial institution, each bankruptcy case presents unique challenges. Running a business is enoughwork so let the experts worry about . filing deadlines and the intricacies of creditor’s rights. Contact the tenacious bankruptcy lawyers at Hodges, Doughty & Carson, PLLC.