The goal of a bankruptcy is to obtain a discharge of debts. When a debt is discharged, it is no longer collectable against the debtor personally.
When you have a personal liability for a debt, a creditor with a judgment can use the legal system to collect on that debt with assets that were either pledged as collateral or other assets. The bankruptcy discharge eliminates the debtor’s personal liability.
The discharge prevents creditors from beginning or continuing any law suit to enforce a discharged debt against the debtor or the debtor’s property. Any judgment as to a debt arising before the bankruptcy began is void after the discharge. However please keep in mind that some debts are not dischargeable in bankruptcy and they are unaltered by the bankruptcy discharge and remain just as valid as they were before the bankruptcy.
