You should consult with a bankruptcy lawyer who can guide you through the process (most attorneys will not charge for an initial office visit, in my firm the first 30 minutes are without charge or obligation). So,
Step 1: Set up an office visit with a bankruptcy lawyer to discuss your various options.
Step 2: Put together necessary documents for your attorney to take a look at. He/she will get more detailed later with what you need to produce, but for now you need information about your income, your debts and what kind they are, and your assets and their probable values.
Step 3: Complete the 'means test' with your attorney. This can decide if you qualify to file under Chapter 7 or if you must file under Chapter 13. Sometimes you want to file under Chapter 13 regardless, decide this with your lawyer.
Step 4: After you visit with your attorney, if you are going to file bankruptcy, you will need to take a course on credit counseling from an approved provider. Your attorney should provide the details and give you some options for providers. 'Taking a course' sounds ominous but it's not, you can take the course on-line for less than $40 and it takes most people under an hour.
Step 5: Complete the packet from your attorney, get together the necessary documents your lawyer requests and review the drafts of all the proposed filings from your lawyer. Then, it's time to file your petition, schedules, statements, etc.
Step 6: Attend the 341 meeting (creditors meeting) in Austin (for Western District of Texas, Austin Division filers) with the Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 Trustee (creditors rarely appear). This meeting is usually about 30 days after your initial filing. This meeting usually lasts only a few minutes, is mandator, and is conducted by the Trustee to, among other possible matters, determine if you own any non-exempt assets that can be liquidated to pay creditors.
Step 7: Complete another course, this one is called 'personal financial management'. You must do this to get your discharge.
Step 8: For most debtors in a Chapter 7 case, this step is the hardest. Wait. If everything about your case has been successfully completed, the clerk can issue your discharge sometime after 60 days from the date of that 341 meeing, that is your goal. In a Chapter 13 case, you have to get your plan confirmed, this may involve your needing to go to court, but only if the Chapter 13 Trustee does not recommend confirmation. If your plan gets confirmed, you just continue making payments as called for by the confirmation order.
That hits the high points.
Lee Norton Bain Attorney at Law has been in practice since 1980 and can help you with your bankruptcy issues.
