Bankruptcy has become very common nowadays. It became so very prominent in the lives of people since the global financial system crashed in 2008.It is a very powerful word that can create a major disturbance. Bankruptcy is defined as the legal process that deals with financial problems of any individual or an organization. More specifically it deals with the filing of Chapter-11 bankruptcy. There are different types of bankruptcy namely Chapter-9, chapter -7, chapter-11, chapter-12, chapter- 13and chapter -15. But the maximum number of cases are filed under three major chapters which are Chapter-7, 11 and 13. These Chapters comprises of series of federal laws enacted that allows people to be relieved from the debts incurring on them, such that they can start their lives afresh. It is a complicated process, so before filing for bankruptcy you must completely understand its benefits as well as drawbacks.

The steps for filing bankruptcy in North Carolina are-:

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  Firstly access all your financial assets to make sure you have sure you have absolutely no other means of handling your debt issues. It helps you to determine if you are eligible to file or not and also assists you in finding suitable alternatives.
  
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  You can either have an attorney or could also file the case yourself.
  
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  If you are aiming to file your case under chapter-7 then you need to do test to determine if you are truly incapable to pay your debts. Your previous six month income is measured against a median to prove the above. According to the North Carolina Bankruptcy website (2011) you will qualify for chapter- 7 if are unable to pay at least 6000 dollars over a period of five years.
  
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  If you pass this test, the next step involves in determining as how much of your property is under exempt. Here you need to list all your assets with their actual worth. You can keep only those assets which are allowed by the bankruptcy court. Any property that is not under exempt can be liquidated and be used to repay the creditors.
  
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  After determining which of your property is under exempt, you will be required to attend a mandatory credit counseling session. Here attendance is compulsory.
  
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  Next you need to complete all your related paperwork, including your actual petition, waiver requests, number of creditors, list of exempted properties and all other specific details. These are filed, copied and submitted to the local court.
  
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  Next a meeting with the creditors is arranged which gives them an opportunity to put question to you about your petition and challenges you on different financial grounds.
  
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  If your bankruptcy request is not challenged, then you are allowed to file for any exemption that deals with your case. You are also asked to declare your secured debts as well. As these steps are successful completed a Discharge Order will be released to prove you bankrupt such that you are not legally liable to pay for the debts.
  

This process is not easy as it appears to be. You need to suffer a lot of frustration, angst and other court issues in the process. It is advisable to take the help of credit debt counseling services which helps you in analyzing your actual financial condition and assists you in finding the optimum solution possible.