Prepared by Eugene R. Wedoff
United States Bankruptcy Court
Northern District of Illinois
July 11, 2005

On April 20, 2005, President Bush signed into law S. 256. Titled the “Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005,” this is most substantial revision of bankruptcy law since the 1978 Bankruptcy Code. The new law will be gener- ally effective as to cases filed on or after October 17, 2005. The following summary discusses changes in consumer bankruptcy law affected by the law. This summary addresses the areas of major impact; it is not a complete list of the bill’s consumer provisions.

Changes affecting consumer cases under multiple chapters of the Code1.