This book is uniquely designed to meet the study needs of paralegal students enrolled in a course on fundamentals of bankruptcy, while also serving as a resource and reference for the paralegal in practice. The book covers the topic in a five-level approach. The overview of the substantive law of bankruptcy and insights into why the law provides what is does is followed by a discussion of the written and unwritten rules of procedure in how the law is implemented. The reader is then guided through the maze of bankruptcy practice using such tools as timelines, checklists and aids for analysis. The book concludes with a test of knowledge through hands-on experience in performing tasks that are common in actual practice. A discussion of ethics within each chapter, the Bankruptcy Code and Rules and references to relevant Web sites and software round out the material.