Woodland Hills Bankruptcy Lawyer
Bankruptcy petitions from Woodland Hills homes and businesses are heard in a courthouse that sits right in Woodland Hills itself: the San Fernando Valley Division of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California. That matters more than it sounds, because the division a case belongs to is set by the zip code of the filer’s street address, and it shapes where hearings happen and how convenient the process is. 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 across Los Angeles County and the rest of Southern California, including Woodland Hills and the surrounding Valley.
If you are searching for a Woodland Hills bankruptcy lawyer, you are probably dealing with something specific: a garnishment notice from your employer, a summons from a collection firm, a notice of default on a mortgage, or a pile of credit card and medical balances you cannot keep paying. Each of those problems has its own clock and its own best solution, and bankruptcy is only one of the possible answers. The sections below walk through how filing works for Woodland Hills residents, what California law lets you keep, and what to do in the next few days.
Why Choose Wadhwani & Shanfeld for Your Woodland Hills Bankruptcy Case
The firm focuses on consumer bankruptcy and debt relief, and that focus shows in the people leading it. Raj Wadhwani, a founding shareholder and partner, and Greg Shanfeld, a founding shareholder and partner, are both Board-Certified Specialists in Consumer Bankruptcy through the American Board of Certification, a distinction held by only a small fraction of attorneys nationally. Together the firm’s lawyers bring more than 90 years of combined legal experience.
The individual backgrounds are relevant to anyone filing in the Central District. 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 University of Southern California law graduate, has handled more than 10,000 bankruptcy cases over three decades. The firm files in every division of the Central District court, so a Woodland Hills case is not a stretch for anyone on the team.
How the firm works matters as much as credentials. You get direct access to an attorney from your first call, a free consultation, and fast action when a garnishment, foreclosure sale, or repossession is only days away. Whether you are looking for a Woodland Hills bankruptcy attorney or a debt relief lawyer who will tell you honestly when bankruptcy is the wrong tool, the recommendation is built around your income, property, and goals rather than a one-size-fits-all filing.
Debt Situations That Bring Woodland Hills Residents to a Bankruptcy Attorney
- Credit Card and Medical Debt: Unsecured balances are the classic Chapter 7 target. If your household income passes the means test, these debts can typically be discharged in roughly four months from filing.
- Wage Garnishment: On an ordinary judgment, California caps garnishment at the lesser of 20% of weekly disposable earnings or 40% of the amount your weekly disposable earnings exceed 48 times the minimum hourly wage. Filing Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 stops most garnishments the moment the case is filed.
- Creditor Lawsuits and Judgments: Collection firms often sue first and negotiate later. A judgment can lead to wage garnishment and bank levies, and the automatic stay halts all of it on filing.
- Foreclosure and Missed Mortgage Payments: Chapter 13 lets you catch up arrears over three to five years while keeping the home, and in some cases a wholly unsecured second mortgage can be stripped off.
- Car Repossession and Deficiencies: Chapter 13 can help you keep a vehicle you are behind on, and repossession deficiency balances can be wiped out in Chapter 7.
- IRS Tax Debt: Some older income tax debt can be discharged if it meets specific timing rules, and the firm also represents clients with the IRS to stop levies and arrange payment plans.
- Personal Loans and Payday Loans: These unsecured obligations are generally dischargeable and often pile up when someone borrows to cover other bills.
- Small Business Debt: Owners of Valley businesses that did not work out face personal exposure; the firm handles small business bankruptcy and business debt solutions.
What to Do Right Now If Creditors Are Closing In
Start by sorting your paper by urgency. A summons and complaint comes first, because the expired response deadline is not something a court raises for you; if you miss it, a default judgment can be entered. Next come sale dates, repossession notices, and garnishment orders. Gather your last two years of tax returns, recent pay stubs, a list of every creditor, and statements for any accounts that have been levied. Then call. A bankruptcy filing can often be prepared quickly when a sale or levy is close, and the automatic stay takes effect the moment the petition is filed.
For a Woodland Hills address, the case will be assigned by the court’s zip code locator, which uses your street address rather than a P.O. box. The San Fernando Valley Division sits in Woodland Hills and serves communities including Encino, Tarzana, Reseda, Northridge, Canoga Park, Chatsworth, Van Nuys, and Sherman Oaks. Because the locator controls assignment, always confirm it rather than assuming. If your creditors sue you, the state case will be in Los Angeles County Superior Court; the Chatsworth and Van Nuys courthouses are among the county’s locations.
Several mistakes are worth avoiding. Do not make a payment on an old debt to “show good faith” before talking to a lawyer: a payment cannot revive a debt that is already time-barred, and a written, signed acknowledgment is what restarts the limitations clock. Do not move assets or pay back family members ahead of other creditors, which can create problems in the case. Do not hire a petition preparer to fill in forms; they cannot advise you, choose your exemptions, or stand beside you if a trustee raises an issue. And do not wait for the sale date to call; foreclosure timelines are longer than many people fear, but reinstatement rights end five business days before the sale.
What California’s Exemption Systems Let a Woodland Hills Filer Keep
Most clients assume bankruptcy means giving up the house, the car, and the retirement account. In practice, the vast majority of the firm’s clients keep everything they own. California has opted out of the federal exemptions, so you choose between two state systems for your whole case: the standard system under CCP section 704, which includes a substantial homestead exemption, and the alternative under section 703.140(b), which offers a flexible wildcard that often suits renters better. You cannot mix and match, and you generally must have lived in California for at least 730 days to use the state exemptions.
Homeowners in the Valley should pay particular attention. Since a 2021 reform, the homestead exemption is tied to the prior year’s countywide median single-family home sale price, bounded by a statutory floor and an annually inflation-adjusted ceiling. In a county with high home values, that can protect far more equity than the old tiered amounts did. Whether you stay current on the mortgage and how much equity you hold decide whether Chapter 7 protects the house or whether Chapter 13 is the safer route. Choosing the right system is one of the most consequential calls in a case, and it is made with your actual numbers in hand.
Chapter 7, Chapter 13, or a Way Around Bankruptcy Altogether
Chapter 7 suits people with limited income and mostly unsecured debt. It starts with the means test, which compares your household income to the California median for your household size and then considers your expenses. Chapter 13 is built for steady earners who need structure: one monthly payment over three to five years, with creditors bound by the confirmed plan. It is the usual answer when income is above the means test, when you owe priority taxes or support arrears that Chapter 7 cannot eliminate, or when you want to hold onto a home you are behind on.
Sometimes neither is right. Debt settlement lets the firm negotiate directly with lenders to resolve what you owe for less than the full balance, loan modification can lower mortgage payments, and judgments have their own lifespan. A California money judgment is enforceable for ten years from entry and can be renewed, though recent reforms limit renewal for many medical and personal debt judgments. Collection suits also have deadlines of their own: four years for written contract and book account claims and two years for oral contracts, but the defense must be raised in a written answer or judgment can still be entered. Part of the job is telling you which tool fits.
Questions Woodland Hills Residents Ask About Filing for Bankruptcy
How fast can a bankruptcy filing stop a garnishment or foreclosure sale?
The automatic stay takes effect the instant the petition is filed. Creditors must stop collection, including lawsuits, bank levies, garnishments, repossessions, and foreclosure proceedings. When a sale date is close, the firm can often prepare and file quickly.
Will I lose my house or car?
Most clients keep both. In Chapter 7, the question is whether California’s exemptions cover your equity and whether you are current on payments. If equity exceeds the exemption or you are behind, Chapter 13 allows you to keep the property and catch up over time.
What debts can be discharged?
Most unsecured debt, including credit cards, medical bills, personal loans, payday loans, and deficiency balances after repossession or foreclosure. Some older income taxes can qualify if they meet timing rules. Child support, alimony, most student loans, most government fines, and debts from drunk-driving injuries generally cannot be discharged.
Do I qualify for Chapter 7?
It depends on the means test, which compares your household income to the California median for your household size and then accounts for expenses. If you are over the limit, Chapter 13 may be the better path.
How long does bankruptcy stay on my credit report?
A Chapter 7 can remain for up to 10 years from filing, while credit bureaus typically remove a Chapter 13 after 7 years. The effect on your score fades well before then, and many clients begin rebuilding within the first year.
Can my employer fire me for filing?
No. California and federal law prohibit termination solely because you filed. Separately, an employer cannot fire you because wages are garnished for a single judgment. Your employer is not notified automatically, though it may learn if it is a creditor or if Chapter 13 payments are deducted from your paycheck.
Is my bank account safe if a creditor levies it?
California automatically protects a set amount per judgment debtor in a deposit account, and the bank must apply that protection without you filing a claim. The protection does not cover levies for wages owed to another, child or spousal support, or debts owed to the state, and the amount is adjusted periodically. Filing bankruptcy stops the levy altogether.
What if I already have a judgment against me from years ago?
Check its age. Enforceability generally runs ten years from entry, with renewal possible, and for many medical and personal debt judgments recent law permits only one limited renewal. A judgment still in force can be dealt with in bankruptcy, and a lawyer can review whether it is still enforceable at all.
Can I sue a debt collector who harassed me?
Possibly. California’s Rosenthal Act covers original creditors as well as third-party collectors. A consumer can recover actual damages, plus an additional $100 to $1,000 if the violation was willful and knowing, and attorney fees if successful. 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.
How long after repossession can I still get my car back?
The lender must send at least 15 days’ written notice before disposing of a repossessed vehicle (20 days if mailed from or to an address outside California). On written request, the redemption period must be extended by 10 days. A deficiency can be pursued only if the required notice went out within 60 days of repossession or surrender.
Can I file 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.
Do I have to come in person?
No. The firm handles cases fully by phone, email, video, and online chat, and offers 100% virtual consultations.
Serving Woodland Hills and Communities Across Los Angeles County and Southern California
Woodland Hills sits within the western San Fernando Valley, and the firm’s work starts there and spreads outward. Clients come from Woodland Hills itself and from neighboring Tarzana, Encino, Canoga Park, Reseda, and Northridge, as well as Granada Hills, North Hills, Mission Hills, North Hollywood, Van Nuys, Sherman Oaks, San Fernando, and Sylmar. On the Westside, the firm also serves Hollywood and Santa Monica.
The same representation extends across Los Angeles County to Los Angeles, Santa Clarita, Long Beach, Lakewood, Torrance, Compton, Inglewood, Lancaster, Palmdale, and the Antelope Valley communities including Acton. In the Inland Empire and eastern San Gabriel Valley, the firm serves Ontario, Rancho Cucamonga, Upland, Fontana, San Bernardino, Pomona, Chino, Chino Hills, Montclair, Claremont, Glendora, and West Covina, along with Riverside and the Coachella Valley. In Orange County, clients come from Anaheim, Santa Ana, Garden Grove, Buena Park, Fullerton, Huntington Beach, Westminster, Costa Mesa, Newport Beach, Tustin, La Habra, Placentia, Mission Viejo, and Laguna Niguel, and the firm also works with families in Norwalk, Bellflower, Paramount, Gardena, Cerritos, Cypress, Signal Hill, and Huntington Park.
Talk With a Woodland Hills Bankruptcy Attorney Today
You do not have to wait until a sale date or levy forces the decision. Call Wadhwani & Shanfeld for a free consultation and speak directly with a Woodland Hills bankruptcy attorney about your options, inside bankruptcy and outside it. You will get a plain-English answer about which path makes sense, and if a garnishment, foreclosure, or repossession is days away, say so on the first call so the firm can move quickly.
