Debtor & Creditor Rights

Structure Law Group, LLP operates in the tech hubs of Silicon Valley, Los Angeles, and Austin, TX. We offer streamlined legal services to startups and established businesses to navigate the complexities of a changing regulatory structure. With locations in four of the top tech centers in the country, we are ideally situated to offer cost-effective strategies that form the foundation on which your company can grow.

Our skilled Austin, TX corporate attorneys can protect your business from creditor actions or seek funds that you are owed.

Texas has some of the most permissive and debtor-friendly laws when it comes to bankruptcy. Individuals are allowed to protect more of their personal assets than they can under federal law or in most other states. Companies operating in Texas need to be aware of this. It can be quite difficult to recover money from a debtor who has filed for Chapter 7 in Texas.

While it can be tempting to hand the debt over to a collections company, these companies pay pennies on the dollar for any debt they collect. A Texas creditor rights attorney, on the other hand, can file an immediate lawsuit, get a judgment in your favor, and then begin taking more aggressive collection actions against the individual or debtor company.

Once your company has a judgment in your favor, you can attach a lien to real property, levy a bank account, or garnish wages. These are three of the most effective actions you can take against a debtor. Collections companies can only harass debtors into compliance.

Once a debtor files for bankruptcy, your options are limited and all creditor actions taken to recover the debt must be stopped. Ideally, the debtor would file their bankruptcy before the creditor gets a judgment in their favor. In fact, once the debtor knows about the lawsuit, it is common for them to either threaten bankruptcy or simply file for bankruptcy. Texas law helps an individual protect most of their valuable assets leaving creditors with very little to liquidate in Chapter 7.

Unsecured creditors have the option of offering the debtor a lien in lieu of filing for bankruptcy. A voluntary lien may rehabilitate the debt, give the debtor a chance to pay, and secure the debt for the creditor. Similarly, creditors can offer the option of wage garnishment to repay the debt so that the debtor can avoid bankruptcy. However, Texas bankruptcy rights are quite extensive in giving debtors more leverage in such negotiations.

The Austin creditor rights attorneys at SLG can help your company make the best moves to protect your interests.

Post-judgment remedies for Austin creditors include:

• Attaching a lien to real property
• Sequestering encumbered assets
• Garnishing the debtor’s wages

These can be, in some cases, granted to a creditor without a hearing.

In Texas, a third party appointed by a judge can act as a private detective and locate assets that should be turned over to a creditor for the purpose of satisfying a judgment. The typical methods of recovering debts proved to be inadequate according to the Texas legislature. Those who have valuable assets out of state can protect these assets from creditors. Hence, why receivers are important. They can locate, take possession of, and liquidate assets in other states so that creditors can be repaid.

Texas offers creditors the ability to seize a judgment-debtor’s non-exempt property. Texas has a long list of exempt properties that you can find in Texas Property Code §41.002. Property like vacation homes, boats, and non-essential luxuries are not exempt from the bankruptcy code. It is this type of property that a Writ of Execution will target. The writ of execution allows the judgment creditor in concert with the Sheriff to seize non-exempt property and then liquidate it for the benefit of the creditor.

Texas permits, in certain cases, a company to be held liable for the conduct of a shareholder, employee, or subsidiary. In some cases, this will involve creditor actions against companies to absorb the debts of stakeholders. SLG provides alter ego defense to Austin companies. We can also help your company collect a debt from a stakeholder who acts in concert with another corporation.

SLG ATX provides top-quality services to Texas businesses that are attempting to collect debts from either individual customers or other businesses. This includes researching the debtor to determine if legal action is useful, filing demand letters, and seeking a judgment against the debtor in court. If the debtor files for bankruptcy, then we can help ensure that your company’s debt is considered during the bankruptcy process. We can also seek out other remedies to satisfy the debt directly with the debtor. The Austin creditor’s attorneys at SLG provide comprehensive creditors’ rights services to businesses seeking the recovery of a debt.

SLG debtor rights attorneys also offer debt defense services to Austin businesses that need to restructure their debt, file for bankruptcy, or are accused of owing money. We provide bankruptcy representation and will represent you during bankruptcy hearings, depositions, and protect your assets from liquidation.

In Texas, companies can file under either Chapter 11 or Chapter 7. Companies do not survive the Chapter 7 liquidation process. Their assets are transferred to a bankruptcy estate and then liquidated to repay creditors. Chapter 11 allows the company to attempt to reorganize and repay most of its debts. The process is overseen by a bankruptcy trustee. SLG provides bankruptcy services including:

• Claim prosecution
• Stay relief
• Preference defense
• Turnover actions
• Lien avoidance
• Discharge ability actions
• Representation in all phases of Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings
• Representation in Chapter 7 liquidation proceedings
• Bankruptcy counseling

Bankruptcy is a part of our economy and necessary to its healthy functioning. Whether you are a creditor seeking the recovery of a debt or a debtor seeking to fight a claim, the Austin, TX creditor and debtor rights attorneys at Structure Law Group, LLP can help protect your interests and advocate on your behalf. Call today at (512) 881-7500 to learn more.