Dade County Bankruptcy Records

Dade County bankruptcy records are filed and stored in the federal court system, not at the county courthouse in Trenton. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Georgia has jurisdiction over all bankruptcy cases from this county. Residents looking for case filings, discharge papers, or docket sheets can search online through PACER or call the free McVCIS phone line. Dade County sits in the far northwest corner of the state, right along the Alabama and Tennessee borders, and all its federal bankruptcy matters go through the Atlanta division of the Northern District.

Northern District Court Serving Dade County

The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Georgia handles every bankruptcy case filed by Dade County residents. The main clerk office is at the Richard B. Russell Federal Building, 75 Ted Turner Drive SW, Room 1340, Atlanta, GA 30303. You can call the court at (404) 215-1000. Vania S. Allen serves as the Clerk of Court, and Hon. Barbara Ellis-Monro is the Chief Judge.

Dade County is one of 46 counties in this district. The Northern District also runs divisional offices in Gainesville, Newnan, and Rome. The Rome office at 600 E. 1st St., 339 Federal Bldg., Rome, GA 30161 is the closest to Dade County and can be reached at (706) 291-5639. While the Rome office handles some court business, all Dade County bankruptcy filings are processed through the main Atlanta office. Court hours run Monday through Friday, 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM.

Note: The Rome divisional office may hold hearings for Dade County cases, but records requests should go to Atlanta.

Search Dade County Bankruptcy Filings Online

PACER is the main way to search Dade County bankruptcy records from home. It is an online system run by the federal courts. You need to set up a free account first. Once logged in, search by debtor name or case number to find any Dade County bankruptcy filing in the Northern District. The system shows docket sheets, filed documents, hearing dates, and case status. PACER runs around the clock, so you can search at any time.

If you do not know which court handled a case, the PACER Case Locator searches all federal courts at once. This is useful when a Dade County resident may have filed in another state or district. You can save searches and bookmark cases you check often.

The free option is McVCIS. Call 1-866-222-8029 from any touch-tone phone. Pick the Northern District of Georgia from the prompts. You can search by name or case number. McVCIS tells you the debtor name, case number, filing date, chapter type, judge, trustee, and current status. It runs 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. No account needed. It will not give you copies of documents, but it confirms whether a Dade County bankruptcy case exists.

You can also walk into the clerk office. The public terminals there let you view docket entries and documents at no cost. Printing is $0.10 per page.

Dade County Bankruptcy Record Fees

PACER costs $0.10 per page. That goes for searches, docket views, and document downloads. The cap is $3.00 for a single document of 30 pages or fewer. Viewing records on the clerk office public terminals is free, but printing from those terminals costs $0.10 per page too.

Copy requests made in person or by mail from the Dade County area cost $0.50 per page. If you need certified copies, add $12.00 per document. When you do not have a case number and need the clerk to find it, the search fee is $34.00. Form B1320 is the official form to request a records search. Pay by money order or certified check made out to "Clerk, U.S. Bankruptcy Court." The court does not take personal checks unless you are filing pro se.

Bankruptcy Exemptions in Dade County

Georgia opted out of the federal bankruptcy exemptions. Dade County filers must use state exemptions under O.C.G.A. 44-13-100. The homestead exemption shields up to $21,500 in your home. A married couple filing together can protect $43,000 if the house is in just one spouse's name. Vehicles get a $5,000 exemption.

Personal property totals $5,000, but no single item can be worth more than $300. Jewelry has a $500 cap. Tools you need for work are protected up to $1,500. There is also a wildcard exemption of $1,200 that applies to any asset, and you can add up to $10,000 of unused homestead exemption to it. Social Security, workers compensation, unemployment benefits, veterans benefits, and child support are fully exempt with no dollar limit in Dade County bankruptcy cases.

Types of Bankruptcy Cases in Dade County

Most Dade County residents file under Chapter 7 or Chapter 13. Chapter 7 is liquidation. Non-exempt assets get sold to pay creditors. The remaining debt is discharged. It is fast and usually done in three to four months.

Chapter 13 lets you keep your property. You pay back debts through a plan that lasts three to five years. It works well for people with regular income who fell behind on bills. Chapter 12 covers family farmers and fishermen. Chapter 11 is for business reorganization and costs more to file. All four types of bankruptcy filings from Dade County are stored in the same Northern District court system. Each generates records you can search through PACER or the clerk office. The federal Bankruptcy Code under 11 U.S.C. governs all these case types.

Dade County Clerk and State Court Records

The Dade County Clerk of Superior Court in Trenton handles state-level court records. This includes civil cases, criminal records, property deeds, and liens. The clerk does not keep bankruptcy records. Those are federal. But state records can connect to a bankruptcy case. A lien on Dade County property might show up in both the local clerk records and the federal bankruptcy filing.

The Georgia Superior Court Clerks Cooperative Authority runs a statewide search tool for state court records. You can use it to find deed transfers, lien filings, and other public records in Dade County. For the bankruptcy case itself, you always go to the federal system.

Archived Dade County Bankruptcy Cases

Closed Dade County bankruptcy cases are eventually sent to the National Archives and Records Administration. If a case is no longer on PACER, it is probably with NARA. Contact the Northern District clerk office in Atlanta first. They will give you the case number, accession number, location number, and box number. You need all four to order from NARA.

Expect the process to take several weeks. If you are unsure whether a Dade County bankruptcy record is still at the court or has moved to NARA, call (404) 215-1000. The clerk staff can check for you.

Filing Rules for Dade County Residents

You must live in Georgia for at least 730 days before filing to use state exemptions. This is the residency rule. If you moved to Dade County from out of state less than two years ago, you might have to use your old state's exemptions instead. Re-filing limits also apply. After a Chapter 7 discharge, you wait eight years to file Chapter 7 again. Chapter 7 to Chapter 13 takes four years. Chapter 13 to Chapter 13 needs a two-year gap.

Nearby Counties

These counties border Dade County in northwest Georgia. All are served by the Northern District Bankruptcy Court, so searching for records works the same way through PACER or the Atlanta clerk office.