Many people have no idea what to expect before they go to court to begin their bankruptcy proceedings. It actually is a lot easier than many people think. Bankruptcy lawyer Patrick Kavanagh runs the Law Offices of Patrick Kavanagh, P.C. in Bakersfield, California, and explains here what it all entails.
It is imperative that you review all your papers before you go to court. In most bankruptcies, they only ask about eight to 10 questions, and those 10 questions are something you will go over with your lawyer before you go to court. They include:
- Did you receive the information sheet?
- Did you read it?
- Did you read your bankruptcy petition before you signed it?
- Is it true and correct to the best of your knowledge?
- Are you entitled to inherit anything, or to receive any life insurance proceeds?
- If you’re not filing jointly with a spouse, are you married?
- Does anybody owe you any money other than wages?
Usually there are a couple of more random questions, but those are the basic ones. Go over those questions with your lawyer before you get to the meeting with your creditors.
With respect to court, it’s important to keep in mind that it’s not court in the formal sense, it’s a much more informal court than most people expect. So do not watch Perry Mason the night before. You are asked questions in most cases by someone who is not even a lawyer.
Don’t Be Nervous
People are nervous, but really, as long as everything is done right, you have nothing to worry about. Your lawyer’s main task to do at the meeting with creditors is to get things right, and not to say much. Sometimes they show up to a meeting of creditors and say nothing but “Hello,” Goodbye”, and “My name is…” to the trustee.
The purpose of this meeting is to let the trustee ask questions about the paperwork. The better the job done on the paperwork, the better the results will be.
