Kim Basinger is an American actress and former fashion model. Many of you know the famous actress because of being recognized through her acting accomplishments by the Academy Awards, Golden Globe Awards, and the Screen Actors Guild Awards, not to mention the many movies she has starred. What many of you may not know about Basinger is that according to her lawyers, she once filed bankruptcy that had the effect of saving the small Georgia town of Braselton.

The town was named after the Braselton family that lived in the area for some time. The town was bought from the Braselton Families by a partnership between the Ameritech Pension fund and Basinger in 1989 for $20 million. The Basinger-Braselton partnership hoped to establish Braselton as a tourist attraction with movie studios and a film festival. At the same time that Basinger entered into the contract to buy the town, she was having a dispute with Main Line Pictures over a movie she agreed to act in. Basinger, who at the time had recently been married to Alec Baldwin, did not want to make the movie so she could have a baby at the age of 40.

The studio sued her for breach of contract. Basinger was forced to file for bankruptcy, and although she eventually won her appeal against Main Line Pictures and got a reversal, an over exuberant trustee agreed to pay Main Line Pictures $2 million anyway. Fortunately, the bankruptcy court rejected the trustee’s proposal as failing to give appropriate credence to the merit of Basinger’s legal positions.  Had the trustee been successful, those who held Ameritech’s investments, which Basinger had guaranteed through loans, would have been paid 17 cents on the dollar, and likely, Braselton would have been bankrupt as well. But as it turned out, Basinger eventually sold her minor portion to the Ameritech Fund when she met her financial difficulties. Today, the town has survived and has grown to a population of 2,294.

Not many stories of bankruptcy has this good of an ending, but what we can learn from this illustration is that contrary to popular belief, there is life after bankruptcy. Bankruptcy can happen at anytime and to anyone. Being famous or financially successful is no indicator of future success, lack of misunderstandings, or lack of problems. Filing for bankruptcy is a legal proceeding that is designed to protect both creditor and debtor and to allow the honest person to work their way out of a bad financial situation. In the Basinger case, filing for bankruptcy had the effect of helping others as well as the debtor filing, and Basinger did work her way out of the situation.

There are two forms of bankruptcies- voluntary and involuntary. Although rare, an involuntary bankruptcy occurs when a creditor legally forces bankruptcy proceedings onto a debtor. The greatest majority of bankruptcy legal proceedings are of the voluntary variety. Even the rich and famous can be forced into bankruptcy if they cannot pay their creditors on time, regardless of the reason.

There are two types of bankruptcies an individual can file- a chapter 7 or a chapter 13. A Chapter 7, commonly called liquidation of your assets, is normally the simplest and quickest form of bankruptcy. It is available to individuals, married couples, corporations, and partnerships. A chapter 13 bankruptcy is the second bankruptcy available to individuals and is also called a wage earner’s plan. It enables individuals with regular income to develop a plan to repay all or part of their debts.

We do not necessarily think by filing a bankruptcy, like Basinger, that you will be helping others as well as yourself. Bankruptcy is a personal matter that is most always about you. Our bankruptcy laws are complicated and common sense should dictate to you that consulting with a bankruptcy lawyer is a good idea if you are bankrupt. A good rule of thumb is to define being bankrupt of not being able to pay down liabilities over a five year period when they are greater than the sum of your assets. If you determine you are in need of relief from the stress associated with debt contact us today at www.BankruptcyHome.com . We will help you find a bankruptcy attorney in your area that will help you with any questions you may have on bankruptcy law.

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