There’s been some talk—not enough, in my humble opinion—about the Trump bankruptcies. Here are some basic facts.

First, bankruptcy laws are federal, and they’re found in Title 11 of the United States Code. The title includes nine chapters: 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 12, 13, and 15. One through five apply to all bankruptcy filings.

Chapter 7 is a traditional or straight bankruptcy. The debtor gives up non-exempt property, if there is any, in return for which debts go away. It’s for poor people and corporations with no future prospects.

Chapter 9 is for municipalities. They’re uncommon, albeit less uncommon than they used to be, and my good friend and former partner Lowell Rothschild handled one of the