Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Main page; Contents; Current events; Random article; About Wikipedia; Contact us; Pages for logged out editors learn more
The word bankruptcy is derived from Italian banca rotta, literally meaning ' broken bank '. The term is often described as having originated in Renaissance Italy, where there allegedly existed the tradition of smashing a banker's bench if he defaulted on payment. However, the existence of such a ritual is doubted. [1] [2]
Although the term "bankrupt" may be used referring to a government, sovereign states do not go bankrupt. This is so because bankruptcy is governed by national law; there exists no entity to take over such a government and distribute assets to creditors. Governments can be insolvent in terms of not having money to pay obligations when they are due.
More rarely, personal bankruptcy proceedings are carried out under Chapter 11. The ultimate goal of personal bankruptcy, from the viewpoint of the debtor, is receiving a discharge. [2] In 2008, more than 96% of all bankruptcy filings were non-commercial and about two-thirds of these were chapter 7 cases. [3]
Originally, bankruptcy in the United States, as nearly all matters directly concerning individual citizens, was a subject of state law. However, there were several short-lived federal bankruptcy laws before the Act of 1898: the Bankruptcy Act of 1800, [3] which was repealed in 1803; the Act of 1841, [4] which was repealed in 1843; and the Act of 1867, [5] which was amended in 1874 [6] and ...
However, many principles of insolvency are rooted in bankruptcy laws that trace back to ancient times. Regulation of bankruptcy was a necessary part of every legal system, and is found in the Code of Hammurabi (18th century BC), the Twelve Tables of the Roman Republic (450 BC), the Talmud (200 AD), and the Corpus Juris Civilis (534 AD). [7]
The history of bankruptcy law begins with the first legal remedies available for recovery of debts. Bankruptcy is the legal status of a legal person unable to repay debts. Ancient world
Chapter 7 of Title 11 U.S. Code is the bankruptcy code that governs the process of liquidation under the bankruptcy laws of the U.S. In contrast to bankruptcy under Chapter 11 and Chapter 13, which govern the process of reorganization of a debtor, Chapter 7 bankruptcy is the most common form of bankruptcy in the U.S. [1]