The 2005 Bankruptcy Reform Act added requirements for debtors seeking to file any bankruptcy petition. One of the requirements is the completion of a credit counseling course within 180 days of the filing of a bankruptcy petition. Normally, this course is completed online at the direction of your bankruptcy attorney who will download the counseling certificate with the bankruptcy petition.

               The counselling session can also be done by telephone and in various languages. It is very important to remember that if you file a bankruptcy petition without filing the credit counseling certification, YOUR BANKRUPTCY PETITION WILL BE DISMISSED – PERIOD!

               The credit counseling is supposed to help you analyze the steps you can take to better your financial situation. It is the opinion of this law office that such counselling would only be effective BEFORE an individual finds it necessary to seek bankruptcy relief. In fact, financial education and counseling should be required in high school and college – well before the creditors are knocking on your door!

               Generally, the cost of credit conselling is $50 per household. There are circumstances where a credit counseling agency can waive the fee due to extreme financial hardship but it is on a case by case basis.

The counseling session lasts around 45 minutes. At the end of the session it is required that the client call the counseling session to review the information required. This telephone call lasts approximately 5 minutes.

               Credit counseling is just another step that you MUST complete before filing a bankruptcy. I have not seen a single case where the court would waive the credit counseling certificate for one of my clients.

The author, David Shaev, Esq., is a frequent expert commentator on bankruptcy matters for mass media broadcasting outlets including CBS News, ABC News, CNN Radio and The New York Times. Mr. Shaev is Bankruptcy Of Counsel to the Siskind Law Firm.