San Bernardino Bankruptcy Lawyer
A bankruptcy filed by a San Bernardino County resident is heard in the Riverside Division of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California, not in a courthouse in San Bernardino itself, and the zip code of your street address (never a P.O. box) is what decides that. Wadhwani & Shanfeld is a consumer bankruptcy and debt relief firm that handles Chapter 7, Chapter 13, debt settlement, foreclosure defense, wage garnishment, creditor lawsuits, and IRS tax debt for people across San Bernardino County and the rest of Southern California, and a San Bernardino bankruptcy lawyer from our team can tell you quickly which route fits your numbers.
People in the Inland Empire tend to reach us at a particular moment: a summons from a collection firm has arrived and a response deadline is running, a paycheck has been cut by a garnishment, or a notice of default on a mortgage has been recorded. Each of those has its own clock under California law, and the right move depends on which clock is closest. A bankruptcy filing is one tool among several, and sometimes it is not the best one.
Why Choose Wadhwani & Shanfeld for Your San Bernardino Bankruptcy Case
We represent clients throughout San Bernardino County, including the Inland Empire communities of Fontana, Rancho Cucamonga, Upland, Ontario, Chino, Montclair, and Claremont, along with Los Angeles, Orange, and Riverside Counties. You can speak directly with an attorney from your first call, we act fast when a garnishment, foreclosure sale, or repossession is days away, and the entire case can be handled by phone, email, video, and online chat, with 100% virtual consultations available. The first consultation is free.
The firm is led by two Board-Certified Specialists in Consumer Bankruptcy through the American Board of Certification, with more than 90 years of combined legal experience. Raj Wadhwani, a founding shareholder and partner and 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. Greg Shanfeld, also a founding shareholder and partner, earned his law degree at the University of Southern California and has handled more than 10,000 bankruptcy cases over three decades. We file in every division of the Central District, which matters because your case lands in whichever division covers your home address.
That track record shows up in practical ways. Choosing between California’s two exemption systems, working out whether the means test favors Chapter 7, and deciding whether a lawsuit should be answered, settled, or stopped by a filing are judgment calls, and they are made by board-certified attorneys rather than by a form-filling service. We also tell clients when bankruptcy is not the answer, because the firm handles settlement, negotiation, and loan modification as well.
Debt Situations That Bring San Bernardino Residents to a Bankruptcy Attorney
- Credit Card and Medical Debt: Unsecured balances like these are usually the core of a Chapter 7 case. Whether you qualify depends on the means test, which compares your household income to the California median for your household size and then looks at actual expenses.
- Collection Lawsuits: Once a creditor sues, the clock on your answer starts. If the debt is on a written contract or a book account, the creditor generally has four years to sue; oral contracts carry two. That expired deadline is a defense you have to raise in a written answer, or the court can still enter judgment against you.
- Wage Garnishment: A garnishment on an ordinary judgment is capped by a formula tied to your disposable earnings and the minimum wage, and your employer cannot fire you because of a garnishment on a single judgment. A bankruptcy filing stops most garnishments the day the case is filed.
- Bank Account Levies: California automatically shields a set amount in a deposit account from a levy by a judgment creditor, without any claim of exemption. That protection does not reach levies for support, wages owed to someone else, or debts owed to the state.
- Foreclosure and Missed Mortgage Payments: Chapter 13 lets you catch up arrears over three to five years and keep the house. In some cases a wholly unsecured second mortgage can be stripped off as part of the plan.
- Car Repossession: Lenders must give written notice before selling a repossessed vehicle, and a deficiency claim can follow. Those deficiency balances are generally dischargeable in bankruptcy.
- IRS and Priority Tax Debt: Some older income tax debt can be discharged if it meets specific timing rules, while recent tax debt often fits better in a Chapter 13 plan or an IRS payment arrangement.
- Self-Employed and Small Business Debt: Owners of small businesses in the Inland Empire often carry personal guarantees. Small business bankruptcy and business debt solutions address the business side and the personal side together.
What to Do Right Now if Creditors Are Closing In
Start by sorting your paperwork by urgency. A court summons, a notice of sale on your home, a notice of intent to sell a repossessed vehicle, and a wage garnishment order all have hard dates, and everything else can wait. Do not ignore a lawsuit. San Bernardino Superior Court civil cases are heard at the San Bernardino Justice Center, and depending on where you live they may be assigned to the Rancho Cucamonga or Victorville courthouses or the Fontana District. A default judgment is easy to get and hard to undo.
If your home is in foreclosure, the dates are more forgiving than most people think. The notice of default has to sit for about 90 days before a sale date can be set, and the sale cannot happen sooner than three months and 20 days after that notice is recorded. The notice of sale must be mailed and posted at least 20 days before the sale, and you can reinstate a monetary default until five business days before the sale. Once a sale date is set, a Chapter 13 or Chapter 7 filing stops it immediately through the automatic stay, and we can prepare an emergency filing when time is short.
For a repossession, the lender must send at least 15 days’ written notice before disposing of the vehicle (20 days if the mailing crosses out of California), and you can ask in writing for the redemption period to be extended by 10 days. A lender who misses the 60-day window for giving that notice generally cannot pursue you for a deficiency.
Gather your last two years of tax returns, recent pay stubs, a list of every creditor and collector who has contacted you, mortgage and vehicle loan statements, and any court papers. Do not make payments on old debts hoping to buy time. A payment on a time-barred debt does not restart the clock, but it can muddy the picture, and paying one creditor shortly before a filing can create problems of its own. Do not move assets or transfer property to relatives. Call us first and we will tell you what to hold, what to stop, and what to bring.
Exemptions and the Riverside Division: How a San Bernardino Filing Works
Your case is filed in the Riverside Division, which serves both Riverside and San Bernardino Counties. After filing, you attend a meeting of creditors with the trustee, and we prepare you for it in advance. Most Chapter 7 cases wrap up in roughly four months.
California does not use the federal exemption list. You choose one of two state systems and must stay with it for the whole case. The first, found in the Code of Civil Procedure section 704 series, includes a homestead exemption that now floats with the countywide median home price, bounded by a statutory floor and ceiling that are adjusted for inflation each year. The second, the 703.140(b) system, has a much smaller residence exemption but a wildcard that can be applied to any property, which often suits renters and people with little home equity. To use California’s exemptions at all, you generally need to have lived in the state for 730 days before filing.
Inland Empire homeowners who bought several years ago frequently have more equity than they expect, so the homestead calculation deserves real attention. If your equity exceeds what the exemption covers, Chapter 13 lets you keep the property by paying creditors the value of the non-exempt portion over the life of the plan.
Debt Collectors, Old Judgments, and Rights You May Not Know About
California’s Rosenthal Act covers original creditors as well as third-party collectors, which is broader than the federal law. A consumer who proves a violation can recover actual damages, plus an additional $100 to $1,000 when the collector acted willfully and knowingly, along with reasonable attorney fees. The suit must be brought within one year, and a collector that fixes a curable violation within 15 days of learning about it can avoid liability. We look for these violations when a collector has been calling at work, misstating the balance, or threatening action it cannot take.
Judgments have limits too. A California money judgment is enforceable for 10 years from entry and can be renewed, though a more recent law limits renewal to one time, for five years, on medical judgments with unpaid principal under $200,000 and personal debt judgments under $50,000. If you are dealing with a judgment that is already old, the enforceability date is worth checking before you do anything else.
San Bernardino Bankruptcy Questions We Hear Most
Which court will my bankruptcy be filed in?
San Bernardino County cases go to the Riverside Division of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California, which serves Riverside and San Bernardino Counties. Your street address zip code determines the division.
How fast does bankruptcy stop a garnishment or foreclosure sale?
The automatic stay takes effect the moment the petition is filed. Creditors must stop lawsuits, wage garnishments, bank levies, repossessions, and foreclosure proceedings. When a sale date is days away, we can often prepare and file quickly.
Will I lose my home if I file?
Most of our clients keep their homes. In Chapter 7 the question is whether your equity fits within California’s homestead exemption and whether you are current on the mortgage. If you are behind or have too much equity, Chapter 13 allows you to keep the property and catch up over time.
What debts can bankruptcy 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 under timing rules. Child support, alimony, most student loans, most government fines, and debts from drunk-driving injuries generally cannot be discharged.
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 your plan paid enough to unsecured creditors.
Will my employer find out?
Not automatically. They may learn of it if they are a creditor, if a garnishment has to stop, or if Chapter 13 payments come out of your paycheck. California and federal law bar an employer from firing you solely for filing.
How long will a bankruptcy show on my credit report?
A Chapter 7 can remain for up to 10 years from filing, and Chapter 13 is typically removed after 7 years. The effect on your score fades well before those dates, especially with a secured card and on-time payments.
The collector says my debt is over four years old. Can they still sue me?
The four-year period for written contracts and book accounts is a defense, not an automatic bar. You must raise it in a written answer, or the court can still enter judgment. Making a payment on a time-barred debt does not revive it, and only a signed written acknowledgment can restart the period.
Is my bank account protected if a creditor levies it?
California automatically protects a fixed amount in a deposit account from a judgment creditor’s levy, and the bank is supposed to apply that protection without you filing anything. It does not apply to support, wages owed to another, or debts owed to the state, and the protection is only a partial cushion. A bankruptcy filing stops the levy altogether.
Do I have to come to an office for a San Bernardino filing?
No. We handle cases entirely by phone, email, video, and online chat, and 100% virtual consultations are available. You will still attend the meeting of creditors as the court directs, but the rest of the work can be done from home.
Can a paralegal or document preparer file my case for me?
A petition preparer can type information into forms but cannot advise you, choose your exemptions, or appear for you if a trustee or creditor objects. Errors can cost you property or your discharge, which is why representation by a bankruptcy attorney matters.
Should I file bankruptcy or negotiate a settlement?
It depends on the size of the debt, your income, and what property you need to protect. Settlement can work when you have a lump sum and a few large balances. Bankruptcy usually makes more sense when debts are broad, a lawsuit is active, or income cannot support settlement payments. We evaluate both before recommending one.
Serving Bankruptcy Clients Across San Bernardino County and the Inland Empire
We represent clients throughout San Bernardino County, from the city of San Bernardino itself to Fontana, Rancho Cucamonga, Upland, Ontario, Chino, Chino Hills, Montclair, and Claremont, along with neighboring Pomona, Glendora, and West Covina in the eastern San Gabriel Valley. Our reach continues into Riverside and the Coachella Valley, and into Los Angeles County communities such as Lancaster, Palmdale, Santa Clarita, Van Nuys, and the rest of the San Fernando Valley and Westside. Orange County clients in Anaheim, Santa Ana, Garden Grove, Fullerton, and Huntington Beach are served as well, since every case in these counties is filed in the Central District of California.
Talk With a San Bernardino Bankruptcy Attorney Today
If a lawsuit, garnishment, or sale date is on your calendar, call Wadhwani & Shanfeld for a free consultation and speak directly with a San Bernardino bankruptcy attorney about where you stand. We will go through your income, property, and debts, explain every option inside and outside of bankruptcy, and tell you plainly which path gives you the best fresh start.
