{"id":4977,"date":"2018-06-20T21:00:05","date_gmt":"2018-06-21T01:00:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.irasmithinc.com\/blog\/?p=4977"},"modified":"2021-02-01T12:22:42","modified_gmt":"2021-02-01T17:22:42","slug":"filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada\/","title":{"rendered":"FILING FOR BANKRUPTCY IN CANADA:  INTENSE MENTAL HEALTH &#038; DISCHARGED BANKRUPTCY"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"width: 1920px; max-width: 100%; margin: auto; clear: both;\">\n<div style=\"position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/HmAE2q_TZoo\" width=\"578\" height=\"324\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" style=\"width: 100%; height: auto; float: left; padding: 0px; margin: 0px; border: 0px;\" title=\"anthony bourdain\" src=\"http:\/\/www.irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/2-1920x1080-2.png\" alt=\"anthony bourdain\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 id='filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-introduction'  id=\"boomdevs_1\"><span style=\"color: #00ccff;\"><strong>Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: \u00a0Introduction<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With <strong>filing for\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><strong>bankruptcy in Canada<\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, if a person\u2019s discharge is opposed, there must be a court hearing. \u00a0At the hearing, the court will decide if the discharge will occur. Once the discharge is granted, the person will be relieved of his or her debts as of the day he or she filed for bankruptcy (with certain exceptions) and will be free to start rebuilding his or her credit rating and financial future.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 id='filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-court-of-appeal-for-ontario-decision'  id=\"boomdevs_2\"><span style=\"color: #00ccff;\"><strong>Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: \u00a0Court of Appeal for Ontario decision<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The purpose of my blog is to describe a March 2018 Court of Appeal for Ontario decision, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.canlii.org\/en\/on\/onca\/doc\/2018\/2018onca322\/2018onca322.html?resultIndex=2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Kuczera (Re)<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, 2018 ONCA 322 (CanLII)<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. \u00a0This is an important decision in how mental health issues intersect with the bankruptcy discharge process.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mr. Kuczera\u2019s <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.irasmithinc.com\/blog\/former-pro-athletes-who-are-broke-bankrupt\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">financial problems<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> began with a costly and hotly contested divorce proceedings. \u00a0With his debts mounting and the divorce proceedings continuing, Mr. Kuczera filed a consumer proposal. \u00a0As a result of the ongoing family law battle, his mental health deteriorated and he became <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mayoclinic.org\/diseases-conditions\/depression\/expert-answers\/clinical-depression\/faq-20057770\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">clinically depressed<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. \u00a0He was no longer able to cope with life and was unable to work. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 id='filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-defaulting-on-the-consumer-proposal'  id=\"boomdevs_3\"><strong><span style=\"color: #00ccff;\">Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: \u00a0Defaulting on the consumer proposal<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Up to this point, he was making the <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.irasmithinc.com\/blog\/consumer-proposal-ontario-process\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">consumer proposal payments<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. \u00a0His default in the <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.irasmithinc.com\/bankruptcy_services-personal_consumer-proposal.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">consumer proposal<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> caused it to be annulled. \u00a0The consumer proposal was his attempt to get out of bankruptcy, as he first used f<a href=\"http:\/\/www.irasmithinc.com\/blog\/filing-bankruptcy\/\">iling for bankruptcy<\/a> in Canad<strong>a<\/strong> with an <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.irasmithinc.com\/blog\/can-you-file-personal-and-corporate-bankruptcy\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">assignment in bankruptcy<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> first. \u00a0So, Mr. Kuczera now remained an undischarged bankrupt.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-4991\" src=\"http:\/\/www.irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"filing for bankruptcy in canada\" width=\"580\" height=\"326\" data-wp-pid=\"4991\" data-pin-nopin=\"nopin\" title=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-500x281.jpg 500w, https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2 id='filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-the-bankruptcy-discharge-hearing'  id=\"boomdevs_4\"><strong><span style=\"color: #00ccff;\">Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: \u00a0The bankruptcy discharge hearing<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mr. Kuczera represented himself in Bankruptcy Court on his <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.irasmithinc.com\/blog\/ontario-bankruptcy-discharge-certificate\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">discharge hearing<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. \u00a0He tried to show the Registrar in Bankruptcy that he tried his best to live up to all of his bankruptcy obligations to the licensed insolvency trustee, but due to his mental health issues, he could not. \u00a0Unfortunately, his evidence was only a basic report from his psychiatrist.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Registrar did not grant an <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.irasmithinc.com\/blog\/after-bankruptcy-discharge-canada\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">absolute discharge<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. \u00a0Rather, based on the evidence in front of her, she ordered that a discharge be granted only after payment of the outstanding balance under the consumer proposal, and one other minor condition. \u00a0The Registrar went on to state that he was held responsible for his situation.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 id='filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-appeal-of-the-registrar-s-decision'  id=\"boomdevs_5\"><strong><span style=\"color: #00ccff;\">Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: \u00a0Appeal of the Registrar\u2019s decision<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mr. Kuczera was able to hire a lawyer to appeal the Registrar\u2019s decision to a Judge sitting in Bankruptcy Court. \u00a0The Judge refused to consider fresh evidence in the form of more descriptive psychiatric reports supporting the summary findings presented at the original discharge hearing. \u00a0The Judge dismissed Mr. Kuczera\u2019s appeal.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 id='filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-appeal-of-the-judge-s-decision'  id=\"boomdevs_6\"><strong><span style=\"color: #00ccff;\">Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: \u00a0Appeal of the Judge\u2019s decision<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He now had his lawyer appeal the Judge\u2019s decision to the <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.ontariocourts.ca\/coa\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Court of Appeal for Ontario<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. \u00a0The Court of Appeal disagreed with the approach of the appeal judge. \u00a0The Court of Appeal could not understand why the appeal judge would not allow the more detailed reports from Mr. Kuczera\u2019s treating psychiatrist. \u00a0These new detailed reports were further to the summary report provided to the Registrar.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Court of Appeal went on to say that neither the Registrar nor the appeal judge gave proper weight to the psychiatric evidence. \u00a0It also went on to say that a discharge condition requiring Mr. Kuczera to pay the payments due under the consumer proposal would not be \u201cdifficult\u201d, as described by the Registrar. \u00a0Rather, the Court of Appeal said that it would be \u201ccrushing\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-4991\" src=\"http:\/\/www.irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"filing for bankruptcy in canada\" width=\"580\" height=\"326\" data-wp-pid=\"4991\" data-pin-nopin=\"nopin\" title=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-500x281.jpg 500w, https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2 id='filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-what-the-court-of-appeal-found'  id=\"boomdevs_7\"><strong><span style=\"color: #00ccff;\">Filing for bankruptcy in Canada:\u00a0 What the Court of Appeal found<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">So the Court of Appeal found that:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">the appeal judge erred by not considering the fresh psychiatric report evidence;<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The need for the bankrupt to pay the balance of the consumer proposal payments would be crushing; and<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The fresh psychiatric evidence was compelling.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Given the length of time that Mr. Kuczera remained in bankruptcy, and considering the above factors, the three-judge panel in the Court of Appeal for Ontario unanimously agreed that Mr. Kuczera gets his absolute discharge from bankruptcy.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 id='filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-mental-health-issues'  id=\"boomdevs_8\"><strong><span style=\"color: #00ccff;\">Filing for <a href=\"http:\/\/www.irasmithinc.com\/blog\/filing-bankruptcy-in-canada\/\">bankruptcy<\/a> in Canada: \u00a0Mental health issues<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mental health issues are at the forefront of the news. \u00a0Most recently, both <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2018\/06\/08\/kate-spade-suicide-gender-role-in-mental-illness-diagnosis-treatment.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Kate Spade<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/edition.cnn.com\/2018\/06\/08\/us\/anthony-bourdain-obit\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Anthony Bourdain<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> committed suicide because of mental health issues. \u00a0I believe that as society recognizes mental health issues as a legitimate illness or disability, you will see it influencing Bankruptcy Court decisions. \u00a0That certainly was the case for Mr. Kuczera.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 id='filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-debt-after-your-bankruptcy-discharge'  id=\"boomdevs_9\"><strong><span style=\"color: #00ccff;\">Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: \u00a0Debt after your bankruptcy discharge<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">After receiving your bankruptcy discharge, NOBODY can try to collect this debt again. Discharged debt cannot appear on your credit report as anything other than a zero balance. Sometimes collection agencies report a discharged debt to the credit bureaus, hoping you will pay off the debt and not correct the information with the credit bureaus. The debt will still incorrectly appear on your credit report.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 id='filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-discharged-debt-and-your-credit-report'  id=\"boomdevs_10\"><strong><span style=\"color: #00ccff;\">Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: \u00a0Discharged debt and your credit report<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When discharged debt re-appears on your credit reports, it affects your credit score and can result in higher interest rates or credit denials. Sometimes debt collectors buy discharged debt, knowing they can&#8217;t collect on it, but hoping you don&#8217;t know that. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">These debt collectors may tell you that the discharge doesn&#8217;t apply to them because they are not the original creditor. Don&#8217;t be fooled. Creditors who attempt to collect a discharged debt are violating a court order. The court can stop them, and they may even have to pay damages.<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Discharged debt should not show on your credit report except as a zero balance &#8211; Monitor your credit report and be proactive. A discharged debt is not valid and is not collectible.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 id='filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-do-you-have-too-much-debt'  id=\"boomdevs_11\"><span style=\"color: #00ccff;\"><strong>Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: \u00a0Do you have too much debt?<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I hope that you have found this information helpful. \u00a0<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.irasmithinc.com\/bankruptcy_personal.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bankruptcy<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is the last thing we try to do for a person in financial difficulty. \u00a0If caught early enough, we can get involved in a <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.irasmithinc.com\/bankruptcy_services-personal_bankruptcy-alternatives.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">debt settlement restructuring program<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for you.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.irasmithinc.com\/contact_us.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The<\/span><\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/www.irasmithinc.com\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Ira Smith<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Team knows that you are worried because you are facing significant financial challenges. The stress placed upon you is enormous. We understand your pain points.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.irasmithinc.com\/contact_us.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Contact<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> the<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.irasmithinc.com\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Ira Smith<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Team today. \u00a0We know how to solve your financial challenges, remove your pain and put things back on a healthy path. \u00a0<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.irasmithinc.com\/contact_us.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Contact us<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> today for your free consultation so that we can save your life, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/maps\/dir\/?api=1&amp;origin=43.8082482972573,-79.6591234107833&amp;destination=Ira%20Smith%20Trustee%20%26%20Receiver%20Inc.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Starting Over Starting Now<\/a>.<a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/maps\/dir\/?api=1&amp;origin=43.718383839408126,-79.53450499999997&amp;destination=Ira%20Smith%20Trustee%20%26%20Receiver%20Inc.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-4991 size-large\" title=\"filing for bankruptcy in canada\" src=\"http:\/\/www.irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"filing for bankruptcy in canada\" width=\"584\" height=\"329\" srcset=\"https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada-500x281.jpg 500w, https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 584px) 100vw, 584px\" \/><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Filing for bankruptcy in Canada: \u00a0Introduction With filing for\u00a0bankruptcy in Canada, if a person\u2019s discharge is opposed, there must be a court hearing. \u00a0At the hearing, the court will decide if the discharge will occur. Once the discharge is granted, the person will be relieved of his or her debts as of the day he [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[2652,2654,666,5,2042,13,6,138,29,28,2656,2649,2648,863,2651,990,2650,2655,2653,11],"class_list":["post-4977","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-brandon-blog-post","tag-anthony-bourdain","tag-appeal-judge","tag-assignment-in-bankruptcy","tag-bankruptcy","tag-bankruptcy-discharge","tag-bankruptcy-in-canada","tag-consumer-proposal","tag-court-of-appeal-for-ontario","tag-credit-report","tag-credit-score","tag-discharge-hearing","tag-discharged-bankruptcy","tag-filing-for-bankruptcy-in-canada","tag-ira-smith-trustee","tag-kate-spade","tag-licensed-insolvency-trustee","tag-mental-health","tag-psychiatric-evidence","tag-registrar","tag-trustee"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4977","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4977"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4977\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10300,"href":"https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4977\/revisions\/10300"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4977"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4977"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/irasmithinc.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4977"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}