Mr. K.W.
Hello. I filed for bankruptcy 17 months ago and, by court order, was instructed to pay $3000.00 per month, which I am well behind on. Additionally, I am delinquent on my monthly budget statements by 7 months. While away at work, my trustee went to court, where the judge released my trustee and my bankruptcy application `sine die.` I fear my old creditors may now come after me again. What are my options? Calls to my trustee have gone un-returned.
Posted from: Alberta
This is a fairly normal process. When you are that delinquent on a court order the trustee is required to have your file reviewed by the court and ultimately close his administration.
You are quite right that now your creditors can come after you again and you have relatively few options with respect to this.
The first option is make to pay your creditors directly. This will normally be payment in full plus interest and any associated penalties.
The second option is to return to your trustee, have him reappointed and begin to pay on the outstanding amount ordered by court. Be advised that your trustee will have a fee to get reappointed and the court may require an additional penalty for failing to comply with the original order on a timely basis.
The third option is that you could contact a lawyer and hire him to have the bankruptcy resolved. The challenge here is that the lawyer will have to involve the trustee, you will have to pay the same amounts as in the second option plus the legal fees.
The final thing you could do is contact your original trustee and offer a consumer proposal
to your creditors. This consumer proposal would have to offer the creditors more than they would receive in a bankruptcy and if accepted by the creditors would serve to annul the bankruptcy itself.
Either way you are in a difficult spot and you are better to get this resolved soon as opposed to later.