San Bernardino County Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Lawyer
Wadhwani & Shanfeld is a consumer bankruptcy and debt relief law firm that helps San Bernardino County residents eliminate credit card balances, medical bills, personal loans, and other unsecured debt through a San Bernardino County Chapter 7 bankruptcy lawyer who answers the phone and explains the options plainly. The firm serves families from the Inland Empire communities of Ontario, Rancho Cucamonga, Upland, Fontana, Chino, and San Bernardino, and across the rest of Southern California.
For most people in this county, Chapter 7 comes down to two questions. Does your income fit under the means test, and does California’s exemption law protect what you own? The answers are usually more favorable than people fear. Chapter 7 is often described as liquidation, yet the large majority of the firm’s clients keep their homes, cars, household goods, tools of the trade, and retirement accounts.
The other thing worth knowing up front: filing is a decision about timing as much as eligibility. A garnishment that has already started, a bank levy, a scheduled foreclosure sale, or a repossession notice all have clocks attached, and the automatic stay that comes with a Chapter 7 petition stops most of them the moment the case is filed.
Why Choose Wadhwani & Shanfeld for Chapter 7 Filings in San Bernardino County
The firm has helped more than 30,000 individuals and families, and it is led by two Board-Certified Specialists in Consumer Bankruptcy through the American Board of Certification. Raj Wadhwani and Greg Shanfeld are the founding shareholders and partners, and together the firm’s lawyers bring more than 90 years of combined legal experience to consumer debt cases. Board certification in this field is held by a small fraction of attorneys nationally, and it matters in a Chapter 7 because the details, such as which exemption system to elect, how to value property, and how to handle a trustee’s questions, decide whether a client keeps their assets.
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. Greg Shanfeld, a graduate of the University of Southern California law school, has handled more than 10,000 bankruptcy cases over three decades. The firm files in every division of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California, which includes the Riverside Division that hears San Bernardino County cases.
Clients get direct access to an attorney from the first call, a free consultation, and fast action when a garnishment, foreclosure sale, or repossession is days away. The firm also handles cases entirely by phone, email, video, and online chat, with 100% virtual consultations available, so a client in Victorville or Rialto does not have to rearrange a work shift to get started. The firm also works beyond Chapter 7, including Chapter 13, debt settlement, loan modification, and IRS tax debt, so the recommendation is based on what fits your situation rather than on the only service on offer.
Debts and Situations That Chapter 7 Is Built to Handle
- Credit Card Balances: Revolving card debt is the most common reason people file. Chapter 7 discharges it entirely when the debt is unsecured, including accounts already sent to collection agencies or sold to debt buyers.
- Medical Bills: Hospital, ambulance, and specialist bills from an illness or injury are unsecured and generally dischargeable, which is often the deciding factor for households that fell behind after a health event.
- Personal and Payday Loans: Installment loans, online lenders, and payday loans without collateral can be wiped out, often ending the cycle of rolling one loan into another.
- Repossession and Foreclosure Deficiencies: When a lender sells a repossessed vehicle for less than the loan balance and sues for the difference, that deficiency is unsecured debt that Chapter 7 can eliminate.
- Collection Lawsuits and Judgments: A lawsuit from a creditor or debt buyer does not have to run its course. Filing halts the case and, for dischargeable debts, can end the judgment’s reach, including wage garnishment and bank levies.
- Older Income Tax Debt: Some income tax debt can be discharged if it meets the timing rules. Newer tax debt, and debts like child support, alimony, and most student loans, generally cannot be eliminated.
- Business Debt for Owners: Small business owners with personal liability on business loans or credit lines may be able to resolve that debt through a personal Chapter 7 filing.
What to Do Now If You Are Considering Chapter 7 in San Bernardino County
Start by gathering the paper that tells your story: recent pay stubs, tax returns, bank statements, a list of every creditor with approximate balances, and any lawsuit papers, garnishment notices, foreclosure notices, or repossession letters. The deadlines on those papers are the first thing an attorney will look at. If you have been served with a lawsuit, the response deadline is short, and a missed deadline can lead to a default judgment. Call before it passes.
Do not ignore a foreclosure timeline. California requires the notice of default to be recorded first, and the sale date cannot come sooner than three months and 20 days afterward. A notice of sale must be mailed and posted on the property at least 20 days before the sale. A borrower can reinstate a monetary default until five business days before the sale. Chapter 7 can pause a sale, though if you want to keep the house and catch up on missed payments, Chapter 13 is often the better tool, and part of the first conversation is deciding which fits.
Repossession has its own clock. A lender must give at least 15 days’ written notice before disposing of a repossessed vehicle, and 20 days when the notice is mailed and either the mailing place or the address is outside California. On written request, the redemption period is extended by 10 days. If you are about to lose a car you need for work, tell the attorney immediately.
Two things people get wrong. First, making a small payment to a collector on an old debt does not revive a debt that is already past the statute of limitations, but it can muddy the picture, and a signed written acknowledgment can restart the clock on a debt that is still within it. Talk to a lawyer before you sign or pay anything on an old account. Second, do not move assets, pay back relatives ahead of other creditors, or run up cards before filing. Those moves can create problems with the trustee.
Your case will be filed in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California. For San Bernardino County residents, that is the Riverside Division, which serves both Riverside and San Bernardino Counties, and your zip code, not a P.O. box, confirms the assignment. After filing, you attend a short meeting of creditors with the trustee, and with a firm handling cases remotely, much of the process can be managed without extra trips. Collection lawsuits against you, if any, are typically heard in the San Bernardino Superior Court, with civil matters from the Rancho Cucamonga and Victorville areas moving to those local courthouses, so the stay matters in those proceedings too.
The Means Test and Why Income Decides Chapter 7 Eligibility
Chapter 7 is open to filers whose income passes the means test. The test compares your household income to the California median for a household of your size, and if you are above it, it then accounts for allowed expenses to see whether you have enough left over to fund repayment. The median figures are adjusted periodically, so the current numbers are checked at the time of your consultation. Income above the limit does not close the door; it often points toward Chapter 13, which reorganizes debt into a single payment over three to five years.
Eligibility also depends on timing between filings. You must wait 8 years between Chapter 7 filings, and 4 years to file Chapter 13 after a Chapter 7. After a Chapter 13, the wait to file Chapter 7 is generally 6 years, though it can be shortened if the plan paid enough to unsecured creditors. A prior filing is not an automatic bar, but the dates matter.
Keeping Your Home, Car, and Paycheck Under California Exemptions
California has opted out of the federal exemption scheme, so filers choose one of two state systems for the entire case. The first, built on the Code of Civil Procedure section 704 provisions, includes a homestead exemption that is tied to county home prices with a statutory floor and ceiling, adjusted annually for inflation. Homeowners with real equity usually look here first. The second, found in section 703.140(b), is a flexible system with a wildcard that often works better for renters and people with little home equity, and its dollar amounts adjust on a three-year cycle. To use California’s exemptions, you generally must have lived in the state for at least 730 days.
Choosing between them is one of the most consequential decisions in a Chapter 7, and it is made before you file, not after a trustee raises a problem. It is the reason a bankruptcy petition preparer or notary cannot substitute for an attorney: they cannot advise you on exemptions or defend your choices if the trustee objects.
On wages, California limits garnishment on an ordinary judgment to the lesser of 20 percent of weekly disposable earnings or 40 percent of the amount by which those earnings exceed 48 times the minimum hourly wage, with different multipliers for biweekly, semimonthly, and monthly pay. A judgment debtor can also claim exempt the portion of earnings needed to support the family. Even so, a garnishment takes a bite from every paycheck, and filing stops it. Your employer cannot fire you for a garnishment on a single judgment, and the law also bars firing someone solely for filing bankruptcy.
Bank accounts have partial protection as well. California automatically shields a set amount in deposit accounts from a levy without your filing a claim, but that protection does not apply to levies for wages owed to another, support, or debts owed to the state. Anything above the protected amount is exposed, which is another reason timing a filing matters.
Chapter 7 Questions From San Bernardino County Residents
How long does a Chapter 7 case take?
Most cases are completed in roughly four months from filing to discharge. The filing itself can be prepared quickly when an emergency requires it.
Will I lose my house if I file Chapter 7?
Most of the firm’s clients keep their homes. The question is whether your equity falls within California’s homestead exemption and whether you are current on the mortgage. If you have more equity than the exemption covers, or you are behind on payments, Chapter 13 may let you keep the property and catch up over time.
What debts can Chapter 7 eliminate?
Most unsecured debt, including credit cards, medical bills, personal loans, payday loans, and deficiency balances after a repossession or foreclosure. Some older income tax debt qualifies under timing rules. Child support, alimony, most student loans, most government fines, and debts from injuries caused by drunk driving generally survive.
Does filing stop a wage garnishment right away?
Yes. The automatic stay takes effect when the petition is filed, and creditors must stop collection activity, including most garnishments, lawsuits, levies, repossessions, and foreclosure proceedings.
Will my employer find out?
Not automatically. An employer may learn of it if they are a creditor or if a garnishment must be stopped. Employers are prohibited from firing you solely because you filed.
How much will my credit drop?
It depends on where your score starts. People with high scores see larger drops, while many filers already have damaged credit from missed payments and collections. Scores can begin recovering within the first year with a secured card, on-time payments, and low balances. A Chapter 7 can remain on your report for up to 10 years from the filing date.
Can I file Chapter 7 if I filed before?
Yes, subject to waiting periods: 8 years between Chapter 7 cases, 4 years to file Chapter 13 after a Chapter 7, 2 years between Chapter 13 cases, and generally 6 years to file Chapter 7 after a Chapter 13.
A collector sued me over an old debt. Should I just file?
Not necessarily. Written contract debt generally carries a four-year limitations period and oral contract debt two years, but the expired deadline is a defense you must raise in a written answer, or the court can still enter judgment. A lawyer can tell you whether to answer, negotiate, or file bankruptcy, and a judgment already entered can often be dealt with through a filing. California money judgments are enforceable for 10 years and can be renewed, which is why ignoring one rarely works.
Can a collector have violated the law in how they pursued me?
Possibly. California’s Rosenthal Act covers original creditors as well as third-party collectors, and a consumer can recover actual damages, an additional award if the collector acted willfully and knowingly, and attorney fees. The suit deadline is one year, so raise any concerns during your consultation rather than waiting.
Do I have to drive to an office to file?
No. The firm handles cases fully by phone, email, video, and online chat for clients anywhere in Southern California, and 100% virtual consultations are available. In-person meetings are welcome if you prefer them.
Is it worth hiring a lawyer instead of using a petition preparer?
A preparer can type information into the forms but cannot give legal advice, choose your exemptions, or represent you if a creditor or the trustee raises a problem. Mistakes can cost you property or your discharge, which is why an attorney matters.
Serving Chapter 7 Clients Across San Bernardino County and the Inland Empire
Wadhwani & Shanfeld represents clients throughout San Bernardino County, starting with the city of San Bernardino itself and extending through Fontana, Rancho Cucamonga, Ontario, Upland, Chino, Chino Hills, Montclair, and the foothill communities of Claremont. We also work with clients across the Inland Empire in Riverside and the Coachella Valley, and in the eastern San Gabriel Valley communities of Pomona, Glendora, and West Covina.
Beyond the county line, the firm serves Los Angeles County, including Los Angeles, Long Beach, Torrance, Compton, Inglewood, the San Fernando Valley, Santa Clarita, and the Antelope Valley communities of Lancaster, Palmdale, and Acton, as well as Orange County cities such as Anaheim, Santa Ana, Garden Grove, Fullerton, Huntington Beach, Costa Mesa, and Newport Beach. Whether you live in the high desert or the valley floor, the process is the same: a direct conversation with an attorney about your debts, your property, and your options.
Talk With a San Bernardino County Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Attorney
If the calls, letters, garnishments, or lawsuits have started to pile up, speak with a San Bernardino County Chapter 7 bankruptcy attorney at Wadhwani & Shanfeld. The consultation is free, you reach an attorney directly, and you will get an honest answer about whether Chapter 7, Chapter 13, or a solution outside of court is the better path.
Call today or schedule a virtual consultation, and bring any notices with deadlines on them. If a sale date, garnishment, or repossession is close, say so at the start of the call so the firm can move quickly.
