The Bankruptcy Process

How To File a Bankruptcy Case - Understanding What to Expect.

Step One: Consultation

Every bankruptcy case begins with a office consultation that typically will take 1 - 2 hours to complete. The purpose of this meeting is to obtain from the clients the necessary information to accurately and completely compile the Bankruptcy Petition, Schedules and Statement of Financial Affairs which will be filed with the court. The consultation is also used to ascertain if bankruptcy is the proper remedy to your financial difficulties and to explore non-bankruptcy alternatives, if appropriate. As your attorney, I will have to ask you a lot of questions during this meeting to make sure that bankruptcy is right for you, to identify all legal issues that would affect your bankruptcy filing and to provide the greatest amount of protection to your assets and property.

To accurately evaluate your financial situation, you should bring the following documents with you to the consultation:

Copies of your state and federal tax returns for the last two years.
Copies of all payroll check stubs received in the past nine months.
Copies of your most recent mortgage and home equity loan statements.
Copies of your most recent vehicle loan statements, if any.
A complete list of all outstanding debts, including credit cards, medical bills, consumer loans, student loans, and all other obligations. Also, bring the last monthly statement for each account.
Any legal papers you may have received concerning a past due debt, such as conciliation court papers or summons and complaint.
Copies of titles for your cars, trucks, trailers and recreational vehicles (boats, snowmobiles, ATV's, etc).
A copy of your credit report. You may obtain a free copy at www.AnnualCreditReport.com.

Step Two: Pre-Bankruptcy Credit Counseling

Obtain a "Certificate of Counseling" from a counseling firm approved by the United States Trustee. Typically, obtaining this certificate takes about 45 minutes and can be done by telephone or by internet. I will provide you with detailed information on how to get this done.

Step Three: Filing

You will be asked to review your final bankruptcy papers for accuracy and completeness and sign them. Your case will then be filed with the court and a case number assigned to it.

Step Four: Meeting of the Creditors

About a month after filing your case, you and your attorney will be required to attend the Meeting of Creditors. At this meeting you will be asked by the trustee administering your case questions about the accuracy of your bankruptcy papers, your assets, your income, and other questions. Your creditors may also attend and ask you certain questions, but they usually do not attend. Typically, this meeting takes about five minutes.

Step Five: Post-Bankruptcy Credit Counseling

After filing your case, you must complete a Personal Financial Management Course, which can be done by telephone or internet.

Step Six: Discharge

After successfully completing the above steps, you will receive your Chapter 7 bankruptcy discharge from the bankruptcy court about 90 days after you filed your case. In a Chapter 13 case, your discharge will be issued when you have made all plan payments.