Lakewood Bankruptcy Lawyer
A Lakewood household in financial trouble is usually dealing with two court systems at once: the Los Angeles County Superior Court, where creditors file collection suits and obtain judgments, and the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California, where a bankruptcy petition freezes those suits the moment it is filed. Knowing which court controls which part of your problem often decides whether a paycheck gets garnished next month or stays intact. Wadhwani & Shanfeld is a consumer bankruptcy and debt relief law firm that handles Chapter 7, Chapter 13, debt settlement, foreclosure defense, wage garnishment, creditor lawsuits, and IRS tax debt for individuals and families across Lakewood and Los Angeles County, as well as Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino Counties.
If you are searching for a Lakewood bankruptcy lawyer, the odds are that something specific has already happened: a summons arrived, a bank account was levied, a notice of default was recorded against your home, or a lender repossessed a car you need to get to work. Each of those events starts its own clock under California law, and the right move depends on which clock is closest to running out. Bankruptcy is one answer, but not always the best one, and the first conversation should settle which path fits your income, your property, and your debts.
What a Judgment or Garnishment Actually Costs a Lakewood Household
The damage from an unanswered collection lawsuit is rarely the original balance alone. Once a creditor wins a judgment, California gives it tools to collect: it can levy a bank account, and it can order your employer to withhold part of every paycheck. On an ordinary judgment, the garnishment is capped at the lesser of 20 percent of your weekly disposable earnings or 40 percent of the amount by which those earnings exceed 48 times the minimum hourly wage. Where the local minimum wage is higher than the state’s, the higher local rate is used in that formula, and biweekly, semimonthly, and monthly paychecks use multiples of 96, 104, and 208 instead of 48. You can also ask the court to exempt the portion of earnings you can show is necessary to support yourself or your family. State law bars an employer from firing you because your wages are garnished for a single judgment, but the withholding itself can run for years.
Bank levies work differently. California automatically protects a set amount in your deposit accounts on a levy, and the bank is supposed to apply that protection before turning money over, without you filing anything. That exemption does not apply to levies for wages owed to someone else, child or spousal support, or debts owed to the state, and the protected amount is adjusted periodically. A judgment is also enforceable for ten years from entry and can be renewed, which is why a judgment you ignored years ago can still be used against you. For certain medical expense and personal debt judgments under specific balance limits, renewal is restricted to one time for five years.
Filing a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 case triggers the automatic stay, which halts most garnishments and levies as of the filing. For someone watching a paycheck shrink every two weeks, that is often the most immediate reason to call a Lakewood bankruptcy attorney.
Why Lakewood Clients Choose Wadhwani & Shanfeld for Bankruptcy and Debt Relief
The firm is led by two Board-Certified Specialists in Consumer Bankruptcy through the American Board of Certification, founding shareholders Raj Wadhwani and Greg Shanfeld, and together the firm’s attorneys bring more than 90 years of combined legal experience. Board certification in this field is held by only a small fraction of attorneys nationally, and for a filer it means the person choosing your exemptions and your chapter has been tested in exactly this specialty.
Greg Shanfeld, a University of Southern California law graduate, has handled more than 10,000 bankruptcy cases over three decades. Raj Wadhwani, a Southwestern Law School graduate, helped pilot the Best Case Bankruptcy software in 1998 and was the first attorney to file a bankruptcy case electronically in the Central District of California. The firm files in every division of that court, which matters because the division that hears your case depends on your zip code.
Clients reach an attorney directly from the first call, and the free consultation can be done entirely by phone, email, video, or online chat; 100% virtual consultations are available, so a Lakewood client never has to take time off work to sit in a waiting room. When a garnishment, foreclosure sale, or repossession is days away, the firm acts quickly, and the plan it builds is based on your income, your property, and your goals rather than a one-size-fits-all filing. Because the firm also handles debt settlement, loan modification, IRS representation, and second mortgage settlements, the recommendation you get is based on what works, not on the only service on offer.
Debt Situations That Bring Lakewood Residents to a Bankruptcy Attorney
- Credit Card and Medical Debt: These unsecured balances are the core of most Chapter 7 cases and are generally dischargeable, along with personal loans and payday loans. Collectors and their law firms often file suit in Los Angeles County Superior Court, and a summons starts a response deadline you cannot ignore.
- Wage Garnishment and Bank Levies: A judgment creditor can take a portion of each paycheck or freeze an account. Filing bankruptcy stops most of these actions at filing, and in some cases the firm can pursue other relief while the case is prepared.
- Foreclosure and Missed Mortgage Payments: Chapter 13 lets you catch up arrears over three to five years while keeping the home. California’s foreclosure timeline gives a narrow window, and the firm acts fast when a sale date has been set.
- Car Repossession and Deficiency Balances: A lender must give written notice before disposing of a repossessed vehicle, and a remaining deficiency balance is an unsecured debt that Chapter 7 can erase. Chapter 13 can help you keep a car you are behind on.
- Second Mortgages: A wholly unsecured second mortgage may be stripped off in Chapter 13, and the firm also negotiates second mortgage settlements outside of court.
- IRS Tax Debt: Some older income tax debt can be discharged if it meets timing rules, and other tax debt can be handled through payment arrangements or a Chapter 13 plan. The firm also represents clients with the IRS to stop levies.
- Student Loan Debt: Most student loans are not discharged in bankruptcy, so the firm focuses on strategies suited to the loan type rather than a blanket filing.
- Small Business Debt: Lakewood’s independent shop owners, contractors, and sole proprietors carry personal guarantees on business debt, and the firm offers small business bankruptcy and business debt solutions.
What to Do in the First Days After a Summons, Levy, or Foreclosure Notice
Start by gathering every piece of paper: the summons and complaint, any notice of default or notice of sale, repossession notices, pay stubs, recent bank statements, and a list of every creditor you can identify. The date printed on a summons matters most. A collection suit in Los Angeles County Superior Court requires a written response by the deadline stated on the papers, and an expired statute of limitations is a defense you must raise in that written answer or the court can still enter judgment against you. In California, a suit on a written contract or book account generally must be filed within four years, and an oral contract within two. A payment on an old debt cannot revive one that is already time-barred, and only a signed written acknowledgment restarts the clock on a debt that is still within its limit.
If your house is in foreclosure, the dates drive everything. A sale cannot be set until roughly 90 days after the notice of default is recorded, and the sale date can be no earlier than three months and 20 days after that recording. The notice of sale must be mailed and posted at least 20 days before the sale, and you can reinstate a monetary default by paying what is owed until five business days before the sale. A postponement of at least 10 business days requires written notice of the new date within five business days. If a lender has taken your car, it must send written notice of its intent to dispose of the vehicle at least 15 days ahead, or 20 days if mailed from or to an address outside California, and you can ask in writing for a 10-day extension of the redemption period. A deficiency claim is only available if that notice goes out within 60 days of the repossession and contains the required items.
Where your bankruptcy case is filed depends on your street address. Lakewood residents generally file in the Los Angeles Division of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California, which sits in downtown Los Angeles and covers most of Los Angeles County, but the court determines the division by zip code and the firm confirms it before filing. Do not pay a collector to “settle” a suit before talking with a lawyer, do not ignore a summons, and do not transfer property to relatives in the hope of protecting it, because transfers made before filing are scrutinized by the trustee.
Keeping Your Home, Car, and Savings Under California’s Exemption Rules
The worry that keeps many Lakewood residents from filing is losing what they own, yet most of the firm’s clients keep everything. California has opted out of the federal exemptions, so filers choose one of two state systems, and you must stay with that choice for the whole case. You also generally must have lived in California for at least 730 days to use the state’s exemptions.
The first system, the standard homestead system, protects home equity up to a limit tied to the prior-year median single-family home price in your county, within a statutory floor and ceiling that adjust each year for inflation. For a Lakewood homeowner with substantial equity, that system is usually the safer choice. The second system, the 703.140(b) option, has a smaller residence exemption but a flexible wildcard that can cover cash, a vehicle, or other property, along with tools of the trade; its dollar amounts are adjusted every three years. Renters, and owners with little equity, often do better under that second system. Picking between them is one of the most consequential decisions in the case, and it is made with your actual property values in front of you, not from a chart.
Frequently Asked Questions About Bankruptcy in Lakewood
How fast does bankruptcy stop a garnishment or foreclosure?
The automatic stay takes effect the moment your petition is filed. Creditors must stop lawsuits, levies, repossessions, and most garnishments, and the firm can often prepare an emergency filing quickly when a sale or levy date is close.
What debts can Chapter 7 wipe out?
Most unsecured debts, including credit cards, medical bills, personal loans, payday loans, and deficiency balances after a repossession or foreclosure. Some older income taxes qualify if they meet timing rules. Child support, alimony, most student loans, and most government fines generally cannot be discharged.
Will I lose my house or car if I file?
Most clients keep both. In Chapter 7 the question is whether your equity is covered by a California exemption. If you are behind on payments or have more equity than the exemption protects, Chapter 13 lets you keep the property and catch up over three to five years.
Do I qualify for Chapter 7?
Eligibility turns on the means test, which compares your household income to the California median for a household your size and then considers your actual expenses. If your income is too high, Chapter 13 is often the alternative.
Can I file again if I have filed before?
Yes, subject to waiting periods: 8 years between Chapter 7 filings, 4 years to file Chapter 13 after a Chapter 7, 2 years between Chapter 13 filings, and generally 6 years to file Chapter 7 after a Chapter 13, though that last period can be shortened if the plan paid enough to unsecured creditors.
Will my employer find out?
Not automatically. An employer may learn of it if it is a creditor, if a garnishment has to stop, or if Chapter 13 payments are deducted from pay. California and federal law bar an employer from firing you solely because you filed.
My debt is old. Can the collector still sue me?
A written contract or book account claim must generally be filed within four years, and an oral contract within two. If the period has run, you must raise that defense in a written answer. A payment will not revive a time-barred debt, but a signed written acknowledgment can restart the clock on one still within its limit.
A collector keeps calling me at work. Is that legal?
California’s Rosenthal Act covers original creditors as well as third-party collectors. A consumer can recover actual damages, a court can add $100 to $1,000 for willful and knowing violations, and prevailing consumers can recover attorney fees. The suit must be brought within one year, and a collector can avoid liability by correcting a curable violation within 15 days.
I got a judgment years ago. Is it still a problem?
A California money judgment is enforceable for ten years from entry and can be renewed, so an old judgment can still be used to levy accounts or garnish wages. Bankruptcy may eliminate or address it, depending on the debt and the lien.
Should I use a paralegal or petition preparer instead of a lawyer?
A petition preparer can type your information into forms but cannot give legal advice, choose your exemptions, or represent you if a trustee or creditor objects. Errors can cost you property or your discharge, which is why representation by a bankruptcy attorney matters.
How long does bankruptcy stay on my credit report, and when can I rebuild?
A Chapter 7 can remain on your report for up to 10 years from filing, and a Chapter 13 is typically removed after 7 years. Its effect fades well before then, and many clients see scores begin to recover within the first year with a secured card, on-time payments, and low balances.
Do I have to come into an office to start?
No. The firm handles consultations and entire cases by phone, email, video, and online chat, so you can start from your kitchen table.
Serving Lakewood Bankruptcy Clients Across Los Angeles County and Beyond
The firm’s work for Lakewood clients extends through the surrounding southeast Los Angeles County communities, including Long Beach, Signal Hill, Bellflower, Paramount, Norwalk, Cerritos, Cypress, and Gardena, and north through Compton, Huntington Park, Inglewood, and Torrance. Across Los Angeles County it represents residents of Los Angeles, Hollywood, Santa Monica, Sherman Oaks, Van Nuys, Encino, Woodland Hills, Reseda, Northridge, Granada Hills, North Hollywood, Sylmar, and San Fernando, as well as Santa Clarita and the Antelope Valley communities of Lancaster, Palmdale, and Acton.
Orange County clients in Anaheim, Santa Ana, Garden Grove, Buena Park, Fullerton, Huntington Beach, Westminster, Costa Mesa, Newport Beach, Tustin, La Habra, Placentia, Mission Viejo, and Laguna Niguel rely on the same attorneys, as do Inland Empire residents in Ontario, Rancho Cucamonga, Upland, Fontana, San Bernardino, Pomona, Chino, Chino Hills, Montclair, Claremont, Glendora, West Covina, Riverside, and the Coachella Valley. Whether the problem is a garnishment, a lawsuit, a mortgage default, or a pile of medical bills, the firm applies the same standard everywhere it works.
Talk With a Lakewood Bankruptcy Attorney Before Your Next Deadline
If you are looking for a Lakewood bankruptcy attorney, call Wadhwani & Shanfeld for a free consultation and speak directly with a Board-Certified bankruptcy specialist’s team. You will get a plain explanation of whether Chapter 7, Chapter 13, settlement, or another route fits your situation, and an honest answer if bankruptcy is not the best choice. Bring your summons, notices, and recent pay stubs, and handle the whole conversation by phone or video if that is easier. If a sale date, levy, or response deadline is close, tell us at the start so we can move on it right away.
