Will I Lose My Wedding Ring During Bankruptcy?

You may have never or rarely ever taken off your wedding ring since marrying your spouse. So it may emotionally pain you to have to potentially remove it from your finger and hand it over to your appointed bankruptcy trustee during your bankruptcy case. While you may eventually be able to get a new ring once you are in a better financial standing, nothing may truly replace the meaningfulness you held for your original one. So, please continue reading to learn whether you will lose your wedding ring in bankruptcy and how an experienced Louisville, Kentucky consumer bankruptcy lawyer at Schwartz Bankruptcy Law Center can help you explore every possible measure for keeping it.

Will I have to lose my wedding ring during the bankruptcy process?

Understandably, it is hard to accept that your wedding ring, something that once held such sentimental value to you, may be easily liquidated by your trustee and the funds given to your creditors. Well, you may gain a little hope learning that your ring may qualify for a bankruptcy exemption. That is, exempt property and assets are protected from such seizures and sales. In the state of Kentucky, jewelry is included in the household goods exemption, which protects up to $3,000 worth of eligible property and assets. If this is not enough, you may apply the $1,000 wildcard exemption, as well.

Should I use federal bankruptcy exemptions to protect my wedding ring?

In anticipation of protecting your wedding ring during bankruptcy, you should seek an appraisal from a professional jeweler. This is so you may confirm that your ring indeed falls below the household goods and wildcard exemptions, and therefore, assuring that you will not get in trouble with the Kentucky bankruptcy court. Unfortunately, an appraiser may break the news that your ring significantly exceeds these limits. This means that your creditors may have the right to take the amount that surpasses this cap. Well, you must not panic at this time, but instead, consider choosing federal bankruptcy exemptions.

Notably, there is a federal jewelry exemption of $1,875. Similarly, this is combinable with the federal wildcard exemption, but this is set at $1,675 plus $15,800 of any unused portion of the federal homestead exemption. Hopefully, this amount may be more than enough to cover your ring and any other eligible property and assets. At this time, though, you must be mindful of which property and assets are worth protecting and which are more acceptable to part ways with. For example, given your personal situation, it may not be wise to forgo the homestead exemption and lose your home just to protect your wedding ring and other jewelry.

Understandably, this may all seem like a headache during this especially overwhelming time. Well, to alleviate some of the pent-up stress, please turn to the legal aid of a skilled Louisville, Kentucky consumer bankruptcy lawyer. Contact our office, Schwartz Bankruptcy Law Center, right now; someone will be more than happy to speak with you.