Bankruptcy creditor’s objection to discharge or confirmation

A bankruptcy creditor may object to the dischargeability of a consumer debt. If the court finds in favor of the debtor, it may award attorneys’ fees and costs to the debtor, unless circumstances would make the award unjust. An objection to the discharge of the debtor is an adversarial proceeding, meaning that the objecting creditor must file a complaint with the court. A complaint objecting to the debtor’s discharge in a Chapter 7 case must be filed within 60 days of the meeting of creditors. In a Chapter 11 case, the complaint must be filed no later than the date set for the confirmation of the plan. However, if the objection to discharge is based on the fact that the debtor previously was granted a discharge in another bankruptcy case (under Bankruptcy Code §727(a)(8) or (a)(9) or §1328(f)), then the creditor will object by motion filed with the court. A complaint to determine the dischargeability of a debt in Chapters 7, 11, and 12 cases must be filed no later than 60 days after the meeting of creditors. The court will give all creditors no less than 30 days’ notice, but that time may be extended for good cause. In a Chapter 13 case, the court shall enter an order fixing a time for the filing of a complaint to determine the dischargeability of a debt when the debtor files a motion for discharge. The court will give no less than 30 days’ notice to all creditors, but the court may extend the time if good cause can be shown. If a bankruptcy is converted from a Chapter 11 to a Chapter 7 and a new date set, the complaint may be filed within 60 days of the new date, even though the previous 60-day period had expired before the conversion. The time period may be extended by motion or voluntary agreement, provided that the motion or agreement is made before expiration of the deadline set for filing the complaint. A sample Notice of Objection to Claim can be found here.