There are many players on the bankruptcy field, and understanding the role of each one will help you understand the process better. The Court Clerk is the entity where your case is filed, and it is the Clerk’s office that sends out notice of your filing to all of your creditors. This is accomplished by including a list of your creditors with your filing, and when those lenders enter an appearance in your case they will be on the list of entities that gets electronic notice of all the things that happen in your case. The Judge assigned to your case will be responsible for hearing any motions that get filed, and if you file a Chapter 13 case it is the Judge that signs the order confirming your plan. And, every case has a bankruptcy trustee assigned, to oversee the administration of the case.
The role of the trustee can be a confusing one, but in basic terms the trustee’s job is to administer the case and make recommendations at critical junctures. One thing the trustee does is to make sure that all of your assets have been listed, and that you have not left off any of the required information from your case filing. The bankruptcy trustee has a different role in a Chapter 13 than in a Chapter 7, because in a Chapter 13 the plan payments are made to the trustee and the trustee then pays your lenders. In a Chapter 7 the trustee’s interaction with lenders is not as significant, unless an asset is found that can be liquidated for the benefit of the unsecured creditors. Your obligations to the trustee, in either type of case, include:
● Providing full and complete information about your income and your debts.
● Providing copies of all car titles and home ownership documents.
● Providing copies of your tax returns and pay stubs, upon request.
Most of your interaction with the trustee will take place shortly after your case is filed, at the 341 hearing. It is at this time that the trustee will ask you to provide the documents noted above, and ask you a few simple questions about what caused you to file bankruptcy. Thereafter, you can expect that your attorney will handle any inquiry from the trustee, and your job is to provide your attorney any additional information requested. The limited amount of time you spend talking with the trustee assigned to your case should be short, and before you know it you will be receiving your bankruptcy discharge.
For answers to your questions about debt and bankruptcy, and the role the bankruptcy trustee plays in your case, contact us at www.DsouzaLegalGroup.com.
