When facing financial difficulties and creditors, Arizona residents may often have to contend with wage garnishment, creditor harassment and even asset forfeiture. One of the assets they may have to forfeit is their personal home. However, filing for bankruptcy not only puts an end to bills, but it may also halt asset forfeiture because it puts an automatic stay on foreclosure proceedings.
Two options available to Arizona residents are Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy- depending on income and assets, debtors can choose which avenue to pursue to discharge their debt while retaining possession of their home. Seeking the help of an experienced attorney to discuss the options available may prove fruitful because the legal side of thing can get tricky. An out-of-state couple facing foreclosure learned this the hard way when they tried to take matters into their hand and only ended up penalized by the court.
The couple, facing foreclosure proceedings, learned through an online acquaintance that filing for Uniform Commercial Code liens-claims against an asset- would allow them to retaliate against public officials for their financial difficulties and maybe get their home back. The couple filed false liens against 12 people totaling $114 billion over a period of two years. The online source also informed the couple that if they filed under "Blessing of Liberty", they would be protected from criminal and civil liability, which was incorrect.
According to the wife, they didn't want to file liens against anyone-the whole ploy was simply an attempt to get answers. But the court didn't buy this reasoning and their quest landed them two years in prison each after the couple failed to abide by the terms of a plea agreement.
This story may serve as an example for Arizona residents. Even though there are legal options available to halt foreclosure proceedings, these options must be researched thoroughly and followed carefully to ensure that no law is broken and so that ends sought can be achieved in a legal way. An experienced bankruptcy attorney may be able to guide Arizona residents in these matters.
Source: Pioneer Press, "Minneapolis couple who filed false liens get 2 years each," Emily Gurnon, June 10, 2013
