Some obligations, such as most tax obligations, will not be excused in bankruptcy court. Regarding insurance, there have been a number of court cases involving the premium trust fund accounts of bankrupt agencies. Sometimes at issue is Chapter 11, section 523 of the U.S. Code, which prohibits forgiveness in bankruptcy of debts caused by fraud while acting in a fiduciary capacity. Litigants may have a contract that says the other side agrees to pay your attorney's fees. People sometimes think that means they don't have to pay their own attorney.
Nothing is further from the truth.
There is generally no mechanism to force the other side to pay your attorney's fees except by going through the whole trial process. Your attorney won't often agree to wait eight years and only get paid if you happen to win. If you do happen to win in such a case, the court will order the other side to reimburse you for your attorney's fees. People often ask if a lawyer will take a case on a contingent fee basis. This usually works only where a plaintiff attorney is confident that an accident occurred, that a recovery is fairly likely, and where mainly only the amount is in question.