Debt Negotiation is the process of negotiating with a creitor to pay off a percentage of a balance owed on old bills, invoices, lawsuits, liens, medical bills, utility bills, and judgments. This process is commonly used in debt settlement and debt arbitration. Since 30% of the 1.6 million bankruptcies filed in 2005 occurred on debt that was current, it is often in the best interest of creditors to negotiate management debt repayment schedules with debtors experiencing hardship. They do this through their own programs, promoted through credit counseling, or through independent debt arbitrators using debt negotiation.