When can I file bankruptcy again?
Unfortunately, people sometimes get in a situation where they need to file bankruptcy more than once. If you filed a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, you won’t be able to file another Chapter 7 for 8 years from your filing and a Chapter 13 where you receive a discharge until 4 years from your filing. If you filed a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, you won’t be able to file Chapter 7 for 6 years from filing (or possibly less if you paid all/a high percentage of your creditors in your Chapter 13 case) and you can file a Chapter 13 2 years after filing.
If you’ve had a case dismissed for whatever reason, you may be able to right away. You’ll have to look to see if any motion for relief from stays have been filed in your dismissed case because the wait time is longer (such as 180 days). A second filing within the same year reduces the period of the automatic stay to 30 days without a motion extending it.
The best advice is to seek counsel. Counsel can walk you through your options to ensure you get a good result.
At the law offices of Andersen, Ellis & Shephard, we have represented thousands of individuals in consumer bankruptcy filings.