A Famous Buckeye filed for Bankruptcy

Author: Alexander Littlejohn/ Date: August - 22 - 2010

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Excerpts from a news article retrieved on July 1, 2010 from the website archives of the New York Times and posted December 17, 1981 by an author unlisted, read:

“Archie and Ray Griffin, former stars for Ohio State and current members of the Cincinnati Bengals, have filed for personal bankruptcy after a three-year venture, involving six athletic shoe stores, failed. The liquidation of the stores in Columbus and Springfield, Ohio, is expected to produce enough income to pay a $170,000 loan from the Small Business Administration and a $46,000 loan from the Ohio State Bank, according to the players’ lawyer. Documents in bankruptcy court show that Archie Griffin has debts of $519,568 and assets of $127,750 and that Ray has debts of $539,100 and assets of $93,350.”

Archie Griffin is college football’s only two-time Heisman trophy winner and played for Ohio State University from 1972-1975. Griffin helped his team win four Big Ten Conferences titles with the Ohio State Buckeyes, and was the first player ever to start in four Rose Bowls. In the 1976 NFL Draft, he was the first-round draft choice of the Cincinnati Bengals, selected as the 24th overall pick in the draft. He played all his NFL football with the Bengals from 1976-1982 and played in Super Bowl XVI at the end of the 1981 season. After a successful football career, Griffin returned to Ohio State University to receive a Master of Business Administration degree, and today, he is the current President and CEO of the Ohio State University Alumni Association, and a spokesman for the Wendy’s High School Heisman award program.

Even famous men like the Griffins can be involved in bankruptcy, a legal proceeding that was designed to allow the honest person to work their way out of a bad financial situation. As a society, we have come a long way since the days of debtor prisons and states. Our Constitution provided for our protection against those antiquated ways when it gave Congress the power to legislate bankruptcy law. Today, the primary laws governing bankruptcy are federal. State laws supplement the federal laws by honing out some of the necessary details.

There are basically two types of bankruptcies an individual can file- a chapter 7 or a chapter 13. A Chapter 7, commonly called liquidation of your assets, is normally the simplest and quickest form of bankruptcy. It is available to individuals, married couples, corporations, and partnerships. A chapter 13 bankruptcy is the second bankruptcy available to individuals and is also called a wage earner’s plan. It enables individuals with regular income to develop a plan to repay all or part of their debts.

If you have an income and qualify for a chapter 13, there are certain advantages for filing one. These advantages are: to save your home from foreclosure; to reschedule secured debts; to provide protection for co-debtors; to consolidate your loans under one plan; to keep non-exempt property; to extend certain tax obligations, student loans, or other such qualifying debts; and to qualify for bankruptcy relief. Filing a chapter 7 will not afford you these various opportunities listed. So, if you have assets you want to keep, you currently have an income, and you want to try to pay your creditors as much as what is reasonable, you may want to consider filing a chapter 13 bankruptcy. But, if you do not have many assets, you do not have a mortgage, you just want to get out from under the burden of your debts, and you qualify, you may want to consider filing a chapter 7 bankruptcy.

If you have found yourself in a situation similar to what the two Griffin men found themselves in, whether you have their kind of money or not, you may want to consider filing for a voluntary bankruptcy. If this is the case, please consider allowing a bankruptcy lawyer to properly help you understand how these complex laws may apply in your situation. If you have been flirting with bankruptcy, and you live in or around Columbus or Springfield, Ohio, contact us today at www.BankruptcyHome.com , and we will help you find a bankruptcy attorney in your area that will help you with any questions you may have on bankruptcy law.

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