Indiana Bankruptcy Blog-Tell your Bankruptcy Attorney Everything

             If there is one way bankruptcy debtors get into trouble, it is by failing to tell their bankruptcy attorney about all of their income, assets, debts, etc.  Your attorney needs to know your entire financial picture in order to advise you as to whether Chapter 7, Chapter, 13, Chapter 11 or no bankruptcy at all is the best option for you.  I have been amazed over the years about how many times clients have forgotten to tell me about a bank account or a source of income outside of their regular job.  Luckily, those cases were open and I was able to amend their schedules to show these forgotten items.

          However, it is not always easy for a bankruptcy attorney to "fix" the situation if his or her client forgets to disclose important information.  At my law firm, Halcomb Singler, LLP, I have potential clients fill out a questionnaire which allows me to see all of their assets, debts, income, expenses and additional information that is very useful in giving them bankruptcy advice.  I also meet with clients to review this questionnaire in an attempt to make sure that they have not inadvertently left out any information.  Often, I am able to find out a few facts that my clients have misunderstood or glossed over in their completion of the questionnaire.  However, there is only so much I can do to make sure that I have all the information about each client.  I must rely on my clients to give me information.  And, there are many circumstances in which if a client failed to tell me about an asset that they would end up losing the asset and there would be little I could do to help.

        For example, in Indiana a married couple filing a joint Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition is able to exempt $700.00 on the date of filing a bankruptcy petition.  In the event that the clients failed to tell me about a second bank account that they held on the date of the filing that had $2,000.00 in it, those clients would almost certainly have to turn over approximately $1,300.00 to the trustee, and this is assuming that this second bank account was the only money the clients had on the date of the filing of the bankruptcy.  Had the clients told me about this bank account I would have advised them of how to spend this money in a beneficial and appropriate manner prior to the filing of the bankruptcy.

      Clients often think of their assets in a different way than they are seen under the law.  For example, they might refer to a vehicle that is titled in their name but that was given to their sister last year as their sister's car.  However, since the car is still titled in the client's name, it must be listed as an asset in the client's bankruptcy schedules.

      One of the things I enjoy most about being a bankruptcy attorney is being able to help my clients go through the bankruptcy process as smoothly as possible.  The only way that I, or any other bankruptcy attorney can do that is to have all of the information up front.  So, if in doubt, tell your bankruptcy attorney!  If you live in central Indiana or the Indianapolis area and are considering bankruptcy contact me for a free consultation at my Carmel office!  Also, if there is a bankruptcy topic that you would like to see me blog about let me know.....I am always looking for new ideas.

Halcomb Singler, LLP, is a debt relief agency.  It helps people file for bankruptcy under the bankruptcy code.  No attorney-client relationship with the firm of Halcomb Singler, LLP, is created through this blog. Also, please note that Erika Singler is an attorney licensed in Indiana and does not seek to practice law in any jurisdiction in which they are not properly authorized to do so.  The information contained in this blog is general in nature and should not be relied upon for the circumstances of any individual(s) or businesses.