Credit cards, car loans, mortgages, income taxes, medical bills -- sometimes it may seem that accumulating mountains of debt is the only way to get by in today’s economically complicated world. With interest rates rising and finance charges skyrocketing, these seemingly necessary expenses end up costing Americans more than they bargained for. For decades, when people have found themselves buried in personal debt, bankruptcy has been the only way out. In fact, in 2004 over 1.5 million people filed for personal bankruptcy in attempts to find some relief or even wipe their slates clean and make a fresh financial start.

But as of October 17, 2005 hundreds of thousands of consumers will have to find new ways to handle their financial troubles. On that date a new slate of laws go into effect which will create a legal obstacle course for people looking to solve credit problems in the courts.

The new program is called The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005--sounds like a good thing, right? What responsible citizen doesn’t want to stop abuse and protect consumers? Most consumers consider bankruptcy only as a last resort, a safety net guard against financial catastrophe. But the Act will impose new standards for bankruptcy protection which many will find difficult to meet, and might deny these citizens the help they need. If bankruptcy is an option you are considering, prepare yourself for closer scrutiny and harsher bureaucracy than you might have imagined.