Resources · Stop Creditor Actions
The moment you file, creditors must stop calling, suing, garnishing, and collecting. Learn what the stay covers and its limits.
The automatic stay is the most powerful feature of bankruptcy. The moment your petition is filed, federal law orders all of your creditors to stop collection activity — no more calls, no more letters, no more lawsuits, no more garnishment. The stay is automatic: it takes effect without any judge having to sign an order, without any notice to creditors, and without any action on your part beyond filing.
For people in active collection — being garnished, facing foreclosure, drowning in creditor calls — the stay is often the single biggest reason to file. It gives you breathing room to work through your case without losing what's left.
The stay covers most commercial collection. Understanding its scope helps you plan the timing of your filing.
Creditor phone calls, collection letters, lawsuits, judgments, wage garnishment, bank levies, repossession, foreclosure sales, and utility shutoffs. Any effort to collect a pre-filing debt stops immediately.
Child support, alimony, criminal proceedings, certain tax audits, and some eviction proceedings already underway. Post-filing debts (incurred after the petition date) aren't covered either.
Instantly. The stay is in place the second your petition is filed with the court. Creditors are legally responsible the moment they know you've filed — your attorney typically notifies the most aggressive creditors within hours.
Through the case. Chapter 7 stays run ~3–6 months; Chapter 13 stays run through the full repayment plan (3–5 years). Once debts are discharged, a permanent discharge injunction replaces the stay — any further collection is legally prohibited.
Tell them you filed, provide your case number, and note the date and details. Willful stay violations can result in sanctions, attorney fees, and damages awarded to you. Your attorney can send a formal cease-and-desist or seek court sanctions if a creditor keeps contacting you after being notified.
Yes, through a motion for relief from stay. It's common for mortgage lenders to seek relief when a Chapter 13 filer misses plan or mortgage payments. If you stay current, relief is rare. Your attorney can contest motions for relief when appropriate.
In Chapter 13, yes — the "co-debtor stay" protects co-signers from collection on consumer debts. In Chapter 7, no — creditors can still pursue co-signers even while your case is active. This is one reason Chapter 13 is common when a spouse or family member co-signed.
Repeat filings within 12 months trigger limits on the stay — often only 30 days, or no stay at all in certain repeat-filer scenarios. Your attorney can petition the court for a full stay extension, but you need to raise this at the first consultation so it can be handled correctly.
We can walk through exactly which of your creditors the stay will reach and how quickly. Confidential call, no obligation.