Back in December we posted on the fact that the former lead singer of TLC, Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins had filed for Chapter 13 bankruptcy. However, despite the fact that she is owed $250,000 in back child support, and that it appears that she owes more than what she can realistically afford, her filing was recently dismissed.

In Chapter 13, a trustee is appointed to oversee a case and collect payments from the debtor. In Watkins' case, the trustee was the one to tell the judge that she was simply not adhering to the requirements for bankruptcy.

According to the trustee, Watkins did not file the financial paperwork that she was supposed to, nor did she keep up with her payments. She also failed to provide documentation regarding how much her monthly mortgage payments are.

Additionally, in her proposed repayment plan to creditors she did not list Mercedes-Benz Financial Services. In terms of the child support she is owed, the trustee pointed out that Watkins has not taken any action to try and get this money from the father of her child.

After reviewing the facts of the case, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge decided to dismiss her case. However, Watkins does have 180 days from that dismissal to file another Chapter 13 bankruptcy petition.

This is also not the first time that Watkins has had a bankruptcy case dismissed. In fact, in July a previous Chapter 13 was also dismissed.

Overall, this recent dismissal adheres to the fact that bankruptcy is a legal process with specific laws. An attorney who focuses on bankruptcy can be of great assistance when it comes to navigating the sometimes confusing nature of personal bankruptcy.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, "Judge Scrubs T-Boz's Bankruptcy," Feb. 13, 2012