Plainfield Bankruptcy Lawyer On Pre-Filing Requirements

 According to Plainfield bankruptcy lawyer David Siegel, prior to filing your Chapter 7 or a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, there are several things that the person must do.  The first thing the person must do is give their attorney a statement of income through pay stubs and pay advices.  The amounts of the pay advices should be two months to six months depending on the situation.  This is important because the attorney and the trustee will require some kind of verification of their income.  If the income is not through wages and the person does not have paychecks or pay stubs due to any number of reasons such as Social Security income, unemployment income and those things; then the attorney will provide a statement of income affidavit for the person filing the bankruptcy.

 Also, another requirements prior to filing the bankruptcy is that the person verify their income through filed federal income taxes.  In Chapter 7 bankruptcy, the debtor must provide the most recent two filed federal income taxes.  In a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, the debtor must provide four years of filed taxes prior to the filing of the Chapter 13 bankruptcy.  It is important to note that it is only the federal income taxes that have been filed which is what is requested.  The debtor does not have to provide state taxes unless requested by a trustee. 

Also, another thing prior to filing the bankruptcy is that everyone must take a credit counseling class.  This credit counseling class can be done online, over the phone or at the trustee’s office for a nominal fee.  The class itself is roughly an hour long and that class goes over managing money and managing credit.  This class must be completed prior to filing the bankruptcy. 

Also, another thing that must be done prior to filing the bankruptcy is the debtor must review the bankruptcy petition and sign the bankruptcy petition.  If the debtor does not sign or review the bankruptcy petition, the case cannot be filed.