Now that we’re in tax season, it is appropriate to say a little something about federal and Wisconsin state income tax refunds. The main thing to know is that a debtor’s right to receive a federal and Wisconsin state income tax refund may be considered an asset of the bankruptcy estate unless the refund can be exempted. This means that the anticipated refund must be disclosed on the Schedule B and exempted on the Schedule C. Typically, the “wildcard” exemption is utilized to exempt the refunds and prevent them from coming into the bankruptcy estate as available assets. The problem that arises is when the “wildcard” exemption is “maxed out” and unavailable to protect the refund. The debtor will then lose the refund to the Trustee. An experienced Wisconsin bankruptcy attorney can anticipate this situation and try to avoid it by careful asset review and exemption analysis.