Long Beach Board Certified Bankruptcy Lawyer
The goal in a consumer bankruptcy is simple to state and harder to reach: a discharge or a confirmed plan, with your home, your car, and your paycheck 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 clients in Long Beach and across Los Angeles County and Southern California.
When people in Long Beach search for a Long Beach board certified bankruptcy lawyer, they are usually trying to answer a specific question: who actually has the credential, and does it change how my case gets handled? Board certification in consumer bankruptcy is awarded through the American Board of Certification, and it is held by a small fraction of attorneys nationwide. It matters most in the decisions that cannot be undone after filing, such as which California exemption system to elect, whether a Chapter 7 or a Chapter 13 fits your numbers, and how to time a petition against a sale date or a levy.
Those decisions are rarely obvious. California does not let you borrow the federal exemption list. You pick one of two state systems for the whole case, and the right choice for a Long Beach homeowner with equity looks very different from the right choice for a renter with a car loan and a tax refund on the way.
Why Choose Wadhwani & Shanfeld for Board-Certified Bankruptcy Help in Long Beach
The firm is led by two Board-Certified Specialists in Consumer Bankruptcy, and together the team brings more than 90 years of combined legal experience to every file. Clients speak directly with an attorney from the first call, can have a free consultation, and can handle the entire case by phone, email, video, or online chat, with 100% virtual consultations available for anyone in Long Beach who would rather not take time off work.
Raj Wadhwani, a founding shareholder and partner, is a Board-Certified Specialist in Consumer Bankruptcy and a graduate of Southwestern Law School. He 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. That background in the mechanics of filing shows up in practice when a sale or levy is days away and a petition has to be accurate and on file fast.
Greg Shanfeld, also a founding shareholder and partner and a Board-Certified Specialist in Consumer Bankruptcy, earned his law degree from the University of Southern California and has handled more than 10,000 bankruptcy cases over three decades. Long experience with the same trustees, the same schedules, and the same exemption questions is what lets an attorney spot a problem in your paperwork before a trustee does.
The firm files in every division of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California, and it acts quickly when a garnishment, foreclosure sale, or repossession is close. Because the firm also handles debt settlement, loan modification, IRS representation, and small business debt, the recommendation you receive is based on what fits your situation, including the cases where bankruptcy is not the answer.
Debt Situations That Bring Long Beach Residents to a Bankruptcy Attorney
- Credit Card and Medical Debt: Unsecured balances are the core of most Chapter 7 cases. Once the balances have grown beyond what your income can retire, discharge is often faster and cheaper than years of minimum payments.
- Wage Garnishment: A creditor with a judgment can take a share of each paycheck, capped by statute at the lesser of 20% of disposable weekly earnings or 40% of the amount by which those earnings exceed 48 times the applicable minimum hourly wage. Where a local minimum wage is higher than the state rate, the local rate is used in the formula. A bankruptcy filing halts most garnishments the moment the case is filed.
- Bank Account Levies: A levy can freeze the account your rent and groceries depend on. California protects a set amount in a deposit account automatically, without any claim, but that protection does not reach levies for support or debts owed to the state.
- Foreclosure and Missed Mortgage Payments: Chapter 13 lets you stop a scheduled sale and spread arrears over a plan lasting three to five years. In some cases a wholly unsecured second mortgage can be stripped off.
- Car Repossession and Deficiency Balances: After a repossession, a lender may pursue the gap between the sale price and the loan. Deficiency balances can generally be discharged, and Chapter 13 can help you keep a car you are behind on.
- Creditor Lawsuits and Judgments: A summons starts a short response clock. Bankruptcy halts the suit, and an existing judgment can often be addressed in the same filing.
- IRS Tax Debt: Some older income tax debt can be discharged when it meets timing rules, and priority tax debt can be paid through a Chapter 13 plan while collection is paused.
- Small Business and Personal Guarantee Debt: Owners of failed or struggling businesses often carry personal liability on loans and cards, which can be resolved through a personal filing or a negotiated settlement.
What to Do Before a Sale Date, Levy, or Court Deadline
Start by sorting your paperwork by deadline, not by creditor. A foreclosure notice, a summons, a repossession notice, and a garnishment order each run on a different clock, and the nearest one decides how fast a petition needs to be prepared. Gather the notice itself, your last two pay stubs, recent bank statements, your most recent tax return, and a list of every creditor you can identify. Then call an attorney before the date arrives, not after. A Long Beach filer typically files in the Los Angeles Division of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California, and the debtor’s street address zip code, not a P.O. box, determines the division, so the attorney will confirm that before filing.
For foreclosure, the dates are fixed by statute and you can work backward from them. A sale cannot be set until roughly 90 days after the notice of default may be recorded, and the sale date can be no earlier than three months and 20 days after recording. The notice of sale must be mailed and posted at least 20 days before the sale. A monetary default can be reinstated until five business days before the sale, and if a sale is postponed at least 10 business days, the beneficiary must give written notice of the new date within 5 business days. Those windows are why a petition filed even a day before the sale still stops it.
For a repossessed vehicle, the lender must send written notice of intent to dispose of the car at least 15 days ahead, or 20 days if the notice is mailed from or to an address outside California. You can ask in writing for a 10-day extension of the redemption period. The lender can pursue a deficiency only if its notice went out within 60 days of repossession and contained the required items, and it owes you an accounting within 45 days after the sale if you request one.
If you have been sued, do not ignore the summons. A time-barred debt is a defense, but it is one you must raise in a written answer; a court can still enter judgment if you stay silent. The limitations period on a written contract or book account claim is four years, and two years on an oral contract. A payment does not revive a debt that is already time-barred, and only a signed written acknowledgment restarts the clock. Whether to answer, negotiate, or file bankruptcy depends on the amount, your assets, and how many other creditors are circling, which is exactly the analysis a consultation is for.
Two mistakes cost people the most. The first is paying one favored creditor, such as a relative, in the months before filing, which a trustee can reverse. The second is waiting until the bank has already swept the account. If you are garnished, remember that your employer may not fire you because of garnishment on a single judgment.
Choosing Between California’s Two Exemption Systems
California has opted out of the federal exemption list, so every filer chooses between two state systems and must stay with that choice for the whole case. You also generally need to have lived in California for at least 730 days to use California’s exemptions. The first system, built on the standard homestead provisions, protects equity in a home up to a figure tied to the prior year’s countywide median single-family sale price, subject to a statutory floor and a ceiling that both adjust each year for inflation. The second system carries a much smaller residence exemption but adds a flexible wildcard that can be applied to any property, including a bank balance or a refund.
The practical split is intuitive. A longtime homeowner in Long Beach with real equity usually needs the homestead system, because it shields far more of the house. A renter, or an owner with little equity, often does better under the wildcard system, which stretches to cover cash, a vehicle, and tools of the trade. The numbers in each system are indexed and change over time, so the exact dollar amounts are confirmed at the time of filing rather than assumed. Getting this wrong can expose property to a Chapter 7 trustee, which is why it is the single most consequential choice in a no-surprises case.
Chapter 7 or Chapter 13: How the Choice Gets Made
Chapter 7 erases qualifying unsecured debt, including credit cards, medical bills, personal loans, payday loans, and repossession deficiencies, and most cases wrap up in roughly four months. Eligibility turns on the means test, which compares household income to the California median for your household size and then accounts for actual expenses. Despite the “liquidation” label, the vast majority of the firm’s clients keep everything they own, because exemptions are worked through before the petition is filed.
Chapter 13 fits people with steady income who need structure. Debts are reorganized into one payment over three to five years, and creditors are bound once the court confirms the plan. It is the usual route when income is above the Chapter 7 limits, when mortgage or car arrears need to be cured, when priority tax or support debts cannot be eliminated, or when equity exceeds what exemptions cover. Some debts survive either chapter, including child support, alimony, most student loans, and most government fines, so the attorney sorts out what will and will not be discharged before you commit.
Long Beach Bankruptcy Questions, Answered
Does board certification in bankruptcy actually matter?
It signals that an attorney has met the American Board of Certification’s standards in consumer bankruptcy, a distinction held by a small fraction of attorneys. In practice it shows in judgment calls like exemption selection, chapter choice, and timing, where an error is expensive and hard to reverse.
How fast does bankruptcy stop a garnishment or foreclosure?
The automatic stay takes effect the moment the petition is filed, and creditors must stop collection. In an emergency the firm can often prepare and file quickly to stop a sale or levy.
Will I lose my house if I file?
Most clients keep their homes. In Chapter 7 the question is whether your equity falls within the homestead exemption and whether you are current on the mortgage. If you are behind or have more equity than the exemption covers, Chapter 13 lets you keep the home and catch up over time.
Which debts can bankruptcy eliminate?
Most unsecured debts, including credit cards, medical bills, personal loans, payday loans, and deficiency balances. Some older income taxes qualify under timing rules. Child support, alimony, most student loans, most government fines, and debts from drunk-driving injuries generally cannot be discharged.
How long does bankruptcy stay on my credit report?
A Chapter 7 can remain for up to 10 years from filing, while Chapter 13 is typically removed after 7 years. The effect on your score fades well before those periods end, and many clients see recovery begin within the first year of responsible credit use.
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, a period that can be shortened if the plan paid enough to unsecured creditors.
My bank account was levied. What is protected?
California automatically shields a set amount in a deposit account per judgment debtor, and the bank must apply it before turning money over, with no claim required. It does not apply to levies for wages owed to another person, child or spousal support, or debts owed to the state. Anything above it may be at risk unless a claim of exemption or a bankruptcy filing intervenes.
A collector sued me over a debt from years ago. Is it too old to collect?
Possibly. Written contract and book account claims carry a four-year limit and oral contracts two years. But the deadline is a defense you must raise in a written answer, and a payment on an expired debt does not revive it, though a signed written acknowledgment can restart the clock.
How long does a judgment against me last?
A California money judgment is enforceable for 10 years from entry, and a creditor can seek renewal for another 10. For medical judgments with unpaid principal under $200,000 and personal debt judgments under $50,000, renewal is limited to a single five-year extension. Bankruptcy can often address judgments before those periods run out.
Do collectors have to follow California rules even if they are the original creditor?
Yes. The Rosenthal Act covers original creditors as well as third-party collectors. A consumer can recover actual damages, a court may add $100 to $1,000 for willful and knowing violations, and a prevailing consumer can recover reasonable attorney fees. The suit must be brought within one year, and a collector can avoid liability by correcting a curable violation within 15 days of learning of it.
Is it worth hiring a lawyer instead of using a petition preparer?
A preparer can type information into forms but cannot give legal advice, choose your exemptions, or represent you if a trustee or creditor raises a problem. Errors can cost you property or your discharge, which is why representation by a board-certified attorney is worth it.
Will my employer find out?
Not automatically. They may learn if they are a creditor, if a garnishment has to stop, or if Chapter 13 payments are deducted from your pay. California and federal law bar an employer from firing you solely for filing.
Serving Long Beach Bankruptcy Clients and Communities Across Southern California
The firm represents Long Beach residents and neighbors in Lakewood, Signal Hill, Bellflower, Paramount, Norwalk, Cerritos, Cypress, Gardena, and Huntington Park, and extends across Los Angeles County to Torrance, Compton, Inglewood, and the communities around Los Angeles itself. Our Long Beach bankruptcy attorney team also works with clients in the San Fernando Valley and the Westside, including Sherman Oaks, Van Nuys, Encino, Woodland Hills, Reseda, Northridge, Granada Hills, North Hollywood, North Hills, Mission Hills, San Fernando, Sylmar, Hollywood, and Santa Monica.
To the south and east, the firm serves Orange County, including Anaheim, Santa Ana, Garden Grove, Buena Park, Fullerton, Huntington Beach, Westminster, Costa Mesa, Newport Beach, Tustin, La Habra, Placentia, Mission Viejo, and Laguna Niguel. In the Inland Empire and the eastern San Gabriel Valley, clients come from Ontario, Rancho Cucamonga, Upland, Fontana, San Bernardino, Pomona, Chino, Chino Hills, Montclair, Claremont, Glendora, West Covina, Riverside, and the Coachella Valley. In the north, the firm covers Santa Clarita and the Antelope Valley, including Lancaster, Palmdale, and Acton. Whatever your community, the case can be handled entirely remotely.
Speak With a Long Beach Bankruptcy Attorney Before the Next Deadline
If a sale date, a levy, a garnishment, or a summons is on your calendar, the most useful step is a conversation with a Long Beach bankruptcy attorney who can tell you honestly whether to file, settle, or fight. Call Wadhwani & Shanfeld for a free consultation and speak directly with an attorney about your options, whether you meet in person or handle everything by phone or video.
