A: The State Attorney does have the right to refile a case after a no information. In order for a warrant to be issued for failure to appear you would have to be notified of the Court date that you failed to appear at. It is important that you contact a lawyer in Tavares and throughout Florida to discuss the matter. If it is in fact a mix up that caused you to FTA, your attorney can file a motion to set a bond or have you released. This may even be done by stipulation with the State attorney prior to you turning yourself in on the Warrant.

A: That is exactly the reason that most people must file is that they are unable to pay their debts from their normal income. In this case I am not sure what you are referring to by “current debt”. If you are referring to normal recurring expenses such as rent and electric, the bankruptcy has no effect on those. In regard to HOA dues the issue becomes whether you want to keep your residence or not. Also much depends upon which chapter of bankruptcy you are filing. In regard to student loans these are generally not dischargeable except under certain circumstances. Bankruptcy is a complicated process that I cannot even begin to advise you on this here. It would be best to set up a consultation with a bankruptcy attorney in your area.

A: There is most likely not a danger of DCF involvement unless there is something that has occurred in relation to the children. DCF will typically only be involved if there is abandonment, abuse, or neglect, or risk of abandonment, abuse, or neglect. Nothing in your fact pattern indicates such a risk.

A: You really should meet with a bankruptcy attorney who does both chapter 7 and chapter 13 bankruptcies and give him/her all of the facts so you can proceed appropriately. It sounds like you are eligible to file as long as you haven’t obtained a prior bankruptcy discharge in the last 8 years. What you do depends on a lot of factors, including what you would like to do with the house. The bottom line is that there are so many factors involved here that it is best advised that you at least consult with an expert.

A: Both of these crimes are felonies and as such could result in jail time. However, they are typically handled in 2 different systems. Welfare fraud will typically be handled in the State Court system, and Bankruptcy fraud will be handled in the Federal Court system. It is difficult to predict what would happen as there are many factors that determine the penalty such as: extent of fraud, number of incidents, prior record if any, damages resulting from fraud and ability to pay restitution, effectiveness of counsel, attitude of prosecution, etc…