Chapter 7 is the fresh-start chapter of the Bankruptcy Code. For El Paso residents carrying credit card balances, medical bills, personal loans, old repossession or eviction deficiencies, payday loans and collection accounts they can never realistically repay, it erases those debts in a few months and stops every call, lawsuit and garnishment the moment the case is filed. It is not a sign of failure; it is a legal tool Congress created for exactly this purpose. The typical Chapter 7 client in El Paso County is a working family or retiree whose income covers the basics but not the interest, and who has been juggling minimum payments for years without the balances moving.
Chapter 7 is governed by 11 U.S.C. Chapter 7 and filed in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Texas, El Paso Division. Filing triggers the automatic stay under § 362, which halts collection, lawsuits and garnishments. Eligibility runs through the means test in § 707(b), which compares your household income to the Texas median and, if you are above it, to allowed expenses. You must complete a credit counseling course before filing under § 109(h). Texas is a rare state that lets you choose between the federal exemptions in § 522(d) and the Texas exemptions in Property Code Chapters 41 and 42, which protect an unlimited-value homestead, one vehicle per licensed household member, and up to $100,000 in household goods and personal property for a family ($50,000 for a single adult), plus retirement accounts and life insurance.
Navar Law prepares the full petition, schedules and means test, chooses the exemption set that protects the most for your situation, files electronically, and attends the one required event with you: the meeting of creditors with the Chapter 7 trustee under § 341. That meeting is not a court hearing. It is a short, recorded question-and-answer session with the trustee, held in the El Paso Division by Zoom or telephone in most cases, and it usually lasts about ten minutes. Creditors rarely attend. Attorney Robert Navar sits in with you, prepares you for the questions in advance, and handles any trustee follow-up. In a routine no-asset case there is nothing further to attend; the discharge order arrives by mail roughly 60 days later. Filing without a lawyer risks losing property through a missed exemption or having the case dismissed over paperwork, which is why we quote a flat fee that includes everything.
What Chapter 7 discharges, and what it does not
Discharged: credit cards, medical bills, personal and payday loans, utility arrears, deficiency balances after a repossession or foreclosure, old leases, most judgments and civil debts, and older income taxes that meet specific age and filing rules. Not discharged under 11 U.S.C. § 523: child support and alimony, most student loans absent a separate hardship showing, recent income taxes, criminal fines and restitution, debts from fraud, and injury debts from drunk driving. Secured debts such as your mortgage and car note survive as liens, so you keep the property only if you keep paying; we prepare reaffirmation agreements or advise surrender depending on what makes sense.
The El Paso Division, the trustee and the 341 meeting
El Paso Chapter 7 cases are filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Texas, El Paso Division, at the federal courthouse on East San Antonio Avenue downtown. After filing, the court assigns a Chapter 7 trustee from the local panel and sets the meeting of creditors 21 to 40 days out. The trustee reviews your schedules, pay stubs, tax returns and bank statements ahead of time, then asks you under oath to confirm the information is complete and accurate and to answer a few standard questions. In most El Paso cases the trustee then files a report of no distribution, meaning there is nothing to sell, and the case moves to discharge.
You will also complete a second short online course in personal financial management under § 727(a)(11) before the discharge is entered. We provide the approved provider list and file the certificate for you.
What's included
- Full consultation, means test calculation under § 707(b) and honest advice on whether Chapter 7, Chapter 13 or debt settlement fits
- Preparation of the voluntary petition, Schedules A/B through J, Statement of Financial Affairs and all official forms
- Exemption planning comparing Texas Property Code Chapters 41 and 42 against the federal exemptions in § 522(d)
- Electronic filing with the El Paso Division and immediate notice of the automatic stay to creditors who are calling or suing you
- Preparation for and attendance with you at the § 341 meeting of creditors, by Zoom or phone in most cases
- Handling of trustee document requests, reaffirmation agreements for the car or home, and filing of both course certificates
- Post-discharge guidance on rebuilding credit and correcting reports that still show discharged balances
How it works
Consultation and document gathering
We review your debts, income, property and goals at our El Paso office or by video, run the means test and confirm Chapter 7 is the right fit. You complete the online credit counseling course and send us pay stubs, tax returns and statements.
Petition and filing
We draft the petition and schedules, choose your exemptions, review everything with you line by line, and file electronically with the El Paso Division. The automatic stay takes effect that day and collection stops.
341 meeting and discharge
About a month after filing, you and your attorney attend the short trustee meeting by Zoom or phone. You finish the financial management course, and roughly 60 days after the meeting the court mails your discharge order.