Bankruptcy

Primitive Doc

Primitive Doc

PEB Forum Regular Member
PEB Forum Veteran
Registered Member
Greetings all:

Last week my wife and I had to sit down with a Bankruptcy Lawyer and go over options. After that meeting I was left with some questions.

Let me lay the foundation:

TIMELINE:



P3 written/MEB referral: 27 Jan 2013
Initial meeting with PEBLO: 31 Jan 2013
Meeting with MSC (claim development): 07 Feb 2013
C&P Exams with VA contractor: 1 march to 12 March 2013
Commanders Statement Signed: 5 Feb 2013
NARSUM Request sent to Doc: 18 March 2013
NARSUM returned , signed and MEB rating of unfit: 29 March 2013
Concur with MEB, Packet sent to PEB at FSH, TX: 1 April 2013 (I know right)
Unfit finding by PEB: 9 April 2013
Proposed VA Ratings returned: TBD
Informal reconsideration for combat-connection: TBD
199 Signed: TBD

Request for Individual Un employability sent:

Response received CRSC:

Response received IU:
Transition orders received: TBD



Conditions unfitting:

a. Lumbarspinedegenerativearthritis(MEBdx1)(Vl-No;V3-No;V4-Yes)

b. Righthiparthritiswithimpingementsyndrome (FAI)(MEBdx2)(VI-No;V3-No;V4-Yes)

c. Lefthiparthritiswithimpingementsyndrome (FAI) (and FX)(MEBdx3)(VI-No;V3-No;V4-Yes)

d. Rightachillestendinopathy(MEBdx4)(VI-No;V3-No;V4-Yes)

e. Migraines(MEBdx7)(VI-Yes;V3-Yes;V4-Yes)



Other Conditions for rating:



High BP

ED

Chest pain (My sternum pops)

Sleep Apnea (I am on a machine)

PTSD (Now adjustment disorder)

Right & Left knee strain (I don’t get this one both knees are unstable because they are damaged from compensating for my hips and I was in units that just ran 4 times a week for PT for years and years.

Tennis elbow both elbows

Carpal tunnel both hands

And a partridge in a pear tree…..



So in the last 2 years also coinciding with my physical decline, I have been in a fierce custody battle over my daughter. Ca. Awarded custody to me of my daughter and my ex held her over on a visit in yet another state and the courts and law enforcement want an order from the new state (Basically letting her legally kidnap my child). I have also inherited a parent as a dependent. So as you can imagine my spending has far exceeded my means. And now I am facing a 50% (Gross) pay cut with the needing to also pay child support which was not in the budget as I had/have custody…yadda, yadda, yadda. Extreme Financial Crisis.



I have applied for SSDI that should take 6 months to a year. I know I should not count my %’s before they are awarded but I have looked at my stuff and I don’t really see 100% and IU, in my near future even needing 1 & ½ total hip replacements (THR) now. As I would have to wait for VA to finalize my ratings and then wait for a THR approval (2 years 3 years maybe) I still have to make ends meet for my family. I have the degrees to hopefully get a job and such (No ability to use my GI bill so I will leave it for my kids)



So with that said I do not blame, hate, or revile the Army. On the whole the Army has been good to me. I was not worth knowing before the Army (Not a criminal just a shithead with no integrity or honor). The Army has allowed me to Love myself and most days like myself. The Army has shown me that there was a better me hidden in there and to let that person run the show. The Army has also allowed me to put food on the table and a roof over my families head. So I don’t hate the Army. On the lighter side I do wish this process was more transparent and smoother, but I am thankful that I am in the new system; most of you legacy folks got royally shafted. I am aware that my situation could be much worse.



So my questions are:

Will a CH 13 Bankruptcy hurt my security clearance?

Will the CH 13 hurt my ability to work for the government?

Will or can the CH 13 hurt my standing as a Soldier? (For what little time I have left)

Basically does anyone know anything about this good or bad?



If no one has told you today thank you all for what you have done and what you do.
 
I am going to take a swing at this, and anyone feel free to correct me if i am wrong!

Will a CH 13 Bankruptcy hurt my security clearance?
Possibly. The government assesses threat, responsibility, and stability with your ability to handle finances, in good and bad times. If the reviewer that is looking over your clearance increases your risk factor (Money trouble, more suseptable to bribary, theft, or OPSEC/INFOSEC violations due to stress) Then you may be adversily affected based on the position you hold, tenure, expected longevity of your predicument, and other circumstances.


Will the CH 13 hurt my ability to work for the government?
Refer to question 1;


Will or can the CH 13 hurt my standing as a Soldier? (For what little time I have left)
Your standing, in my opinion, as a soldier; Is not based of the financial game, but your commitment, dedication, and sacrifice to the country. The longer you have served, the more respect I have for you. (And i have served little...)Some may not share this point of view, but alot more will. Of course, this is based on HONARABLE time served. I make no excuses for some individuals that deem themselves above all else just because they serve.
Click to expand...
 
First things first...you want to avoid bankruptcy if at all possible. As I'm sure you're aware, there's not much upside to filing for bankruptcy. You will most like not be able to maintain TS clearance.

Did the attorney feel like you could avoid bankruptcy?

Are you near losing major assets, such as your home? It may be better to allow foreclosure than bankruptcy. Or are you facing possible prosecution because of unpaid bills/debt?

In addition to the attorney, I would be speaking with an accountant about an extreme budget makeover. Like selling and downsizing living arrangements until you can get back on your feet after separation.

Have you done the paperwork to have your parent listed as a dependent with DEERS? Is your wife working?
 
ceilingfan said:
First things first...you want to avoid bankruptcy if at all possible. As I'm sure you're aware, there's not much upside to filing for bankruptcy. You will most like not be able to maintain TS clearance.

It may be better to allow foreclosure than bankruptcy

In addition to the attorney, I would be speaking with an accountant about an extreme budget makeover. Like selling and downsizing living arrangements until you can get back on your feet after separation.
Click to expand...

I agree 100% here, excellent points. Even though a Ch 13 is actually a reorganization of debts vs a Ch 7 full discharge of debts, ANY bankruptcy will have negative impact on your clearance (especially a TS- even more so if compartmentalized...SCI, etc.). You will have a difficult time maintaining/renewing your clearance, and most employers (especially govt) run credit checks and retain the right to not hire you based upon any signs of financial distress. The way they perceive it is that a person facing financial difficulties is more prone to sell information in order to feed their family, etc. and it is a gamble for them to trust a person to handle classified (special handling) information, when they (at least on paper- bankruptcy) have demonstrated that they can't manage their own finances.

Things happen in life, and the economy is horrible- as is the job market. Don't let this all get you and make you take actions that will screw you for 7-10 years+. The military offers counseling, debt restructuring and consolidation assistance....contact your Family Readiness office on post before you file bankruptcy! If you are unable to get any help lined up, PM me and I'll hook you up with some names/numbers. Getting back on track and set up for continued financial success in life could be as easy as bringing a counselor into the picture to help.:)
 
If you are going to file bankruptcy, you need to notify your command security manager in order to have the least impact on your clearance. If you file and not tell them up front it will likely result in losing your clearance. If you notify them, they can do a screening of some kind, I'm sorry I don't recall the specifics, but they can essentially review your situation and make sure it is of no threat to your current access.
 
Just to add to some of what others have said. Bankruptcy will affect your clearance, but can be adjudicated positively if you follow the right steps. The first thing I would do is make an appointment to go see the financial counselors at ACS. Give them a shot at getting things right. They will make contact with your creditors and attempt to reduce your payments. They will do everything a debt consolidation company does, minus the loan. They may be able to save you a lot of heartache in the future.

For your clearance, an adjudicator is going to look at the bankruptcy and decide if you did everything you could to prevent it. Did you attempt to work with your creditors?, did you make payment plans? What is your lifestyle?, etc, etc. What the adjudicator wants to see is that you didn't just "tap out", but did everything you could to make things right. That shows you are trustworthy, and less likely to be a liability.

Being on active duty, you have a lot of options. Explore them all before you go pay a lawyer a grand to get you through bankruptcy. ACS has an iccredible amount of resources, use them.

Joe
 
Folks thank you! you have given me some options here.
 
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