Bankruptcy is an orderly legal procedure supervised by the courts. It is also called insolvency. Filing bankruptcy is the final solution to your credit debt problems. In order to take advantage of this legal form, you will have to meet the basic requirements. In the United States, this means meeting the criteria of the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act. In Canada, filing bankruptcy is covered by the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act. In the United Kingdom, filing Bankruptcy is under the Insolvency Act. Filing Bankruptcy in the United Kingdom and Canada is referred to as petitioning. The act of petitioning or filing bankruptcy may be done in 1 of 2 ways. The debtor can voluntarily file bankruptcy. Contrarily, the creditors may file bankruptcy. The former is called voluntary bankruptcy; the latter is known as involuntary bankruptcy. It is also the norm for bankruptcy to be voluntary. After filing bankruptcy, the debtor receives some protection from harassment by creditors.