Meeting of Creditors
You will receive notice of your 341(a) Meeting of Creditors a few days after filing your Chapter 7 petition. Your attendance is required. You are required to show some form of picture identification and proof of your Social Security number during the hearing which we will have already provided to the Trustee prior to the meeting.
Please arrive at least 15 minutes prior to the meeting time. In addition, if you have a home or automobile financed which you intend to keep and reaffirm, you will need to be prepared to show proof of casualty/fire insurance on your home and full coverage insurance on your automobile, naming the mortgage holder/lien holder as loss payee.
What to Expect at your Meeting of Creditors
The Chapter 7 trustee will ask the following questions after receiving your picture ID and proof of your social security number:
* Your name?
* Your address?
* Have you read the bankruptcy information sheet? (This sheet is included in the package of information we gave you
when you signed.)
* Did you provide the information in the schedules and statements in the bankruptcy? (This is the information you gave
me that we put in the bankruptcy petition and schedules that were filed.)
* Is the information true and correct?
* Did you sign the schedules and statement of affairs?
* Did you read the bankruptcy petition, schedules, and statement of affairs before you signed it?
* Are you familiar with the information contained in the petition, schedules, and statement of affairs?
* Is the information in that petition, schedules, and statement of affairs correct to the best of your knowledge and belief?
* Are all of your debts and all of your liabilities included in the bankruptcy?
* Have you ever filed bankruptcy before?
* (If you own a house or real property) When was the house purchased, and for how much? When was the loan made? If
there is a second mortgage, when was it made, and how much are the mortgage(s)?
Other Hearings
Other hearings may be scheduled during the pendency of your Chapter 7 case. These hearings include, but are not limited to, a creditor's motion for relief from stay. You will be required to attend these hearings unless the motion is withdrawn prior to the hearing date. You should contact our office upon your receipt of any motion to obtain the information we need to resolve the issue.
If an emergency ever arises, which makes it impossible for you to attend any court hearing, please notify our office immediately.
Your Responsibilities
Insurance
You are required to maintain casualty/fire insurance on your home and full coverage insurance on your automobile and name the mortgage holder/lien holder as loss payee. Please provide our office with a copy of the declaration page for our files. Your failure to maintain the insurance could result in the creditor seeking relief from the stay, and you could ultimately lose your home and/or automobile.
Court Hearings
It is your responsibility to attend all court hearings unless otherwise instructed by our office. Your failure to do so could result in the dismissal of your case or the loss of property.
Address & Employment Changes
You are required to keep our office informed of your current address, telephone number, and employer's name and address. Please use the forms provided on our General Information for Our Valued Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 Clients page to notify us in writing of any changes. We will notify the court and the Trustee's office.
Reaffirmed Debts
If you are retaining any property with a lien, you will be required to reaffirm that debt with the creditor. You should continue to make payments to any secured creditor you are reaffirming during your bankruptcy's pendency. Your failure to do so could result in the creditor refusing to allow you to reaffirm the debt and obtaining relief from the stay to foreclose or repossess the property securing the debt.
Complaints to Determine Dischargeability of a Debt
Sometimes, a creditor will file a motion with the court to determine if their debt is dischargeable. You must realize this is a separate action and will result in additional attorney's fees. There are time limits for filing answers and additional court hearings on these types of complaints. If you receive one during your case, you should immediately contact our office to schedule an appointment to meet with Columbus, Georgia, bankruptcy lawyer Brace W. Luquire to discuss the complaint.
Debtor Education Course
You MUST attend a debtor education course prior to your getting a discharge. Usually, you have paid for this course with your initial payment to our office. During your 341 Meeting, we will provide you with the information necessary for you to complete this course. You will probably receive solicitations/advertising through the mail from various companies offering this course. DO NOT take the course through these companies as they will charge you. Please see our General Information for Our Valued Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 Clients page for information on the course.
There are several trustees. You will receive a notice from the bankruptcy court with the name, address and telephone number of the trustee appointed on your case.
If they call you, simply tell them that you have filed a Chapter 7, provide them with your case number and refer them to our office. If they mail you a statement or threatening letter, simply note on the correspondence that you have filed Chapter 7 and your case number and mail the correspondence back to them.
Simply bring the lawsuit, garnishment or foreclosure/repossession notice to our office and we will take care of it.
Your discharge does not protect a codebtor or guarantor. The creditor can pursue collection activity against the codebtor or guarantor.
You can add creditors to your bankruptcy after the filing and prior to your discharge being entered upon the payment of an amendment fee and so long as the debt was incurred prior to your filing. Please contact our office for further instruction.
Your discharge is eligible to be entered after sixty (60) days from the date of your 341(a) Meeting of Creditors. Upon expiration of the sixty (60) day period, the court will enter the discharge and send you a copy. The discharge will discharge you from all debts which are dischargeable. Some debts which are not dischargeable include (but are not limited to) alimony, maintenance, support, student loans, priority taxes, debts for death or personal injury caused by your operation of a motor vehicle while unlawfully intoxicated, debts for restitution included in a criminal sentence imposed on you and those debts which you have chosen to reaffirm and a reaffirmation agreement is filed with the court prior to your discharge. For a complete list of nondischarged debts, please refer to the discharge entered by the court in your case.
Notify us by mail with the information. Please use the forms provided on our General Information for Our Valued Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 Clients page to notify us in writing of any changes. We will notify the court and the trustee's office.
Pursuant to BAPCPA "We are a debt relief agency. We help people file for bankruptcy relief under the Bankruptcy Code."
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