Disaster Relief

The United States Trustee, a part of the U.S. Department of Justice involved in the administration of bankruptcy cases, has granted a bit of relief to some persons affected by Katrina - relating to the credit counseling requirement under the "Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005," an Act which applies to bankruptcies filed on or after October 17, 2005.

Under the Act, individual debtors who seek bankruptcy must undergo credit counseling within six months before filing.

The United States Trustee has determined that there are not sufficient numbers of credit counseling agencies in the Eastern, Middle, and Western Districts of Louisiana, and in the Southern District of Mississippi.

The news release of the U.S. Trustee waiving the credit counseling requirement is available at the link below.