Timeline after 341 meeting

[torosnca]

Thank you all for the valuable information posted here....Am so nervous...have my 341 meeting in the next couple of days. Have a few questions am hoping someone that has gone through this process can share:

1. What happens after the 341 meeting? do I then wait out the 60 day period til discharge; then am home free?

2. Am anxious to get my life back on track and attempt to look for work...can Trustee and/or creditor touch any income earned?

3. Have heard conflicting stories that they can still touch assets, any new assets up to six months after filing the petition.

Any and all help is most appreciated. Looking forward to some feedback...thanking all in advance....

[justbroke]

1. What happens after the 341 meeting? do I then wait out the 60 day period til discharge; then am home free?

Generally speaking, if the United States Trustee (UST) didn't show up at your 341 Meeting to ask you questions under oath, and/or your attorney has heard nothing from the UST or the Trustee regarding additional paperwork requirements, then you are, generally, home free. You just wait your 60 days!

2. Am anxious to get my life back on track and attempt to look for work...can Trustee and/or creditor touch any income earned?

No. Anything "earned" post-petition (after filing) is not part of the bankruptcy estate.

3. Have heard conflicting stories that they can still touch assets, any new assets up to six months after filing the petition.

You probably read these stories on other forums, but not here on BKForum. The only thing that the Trustee can go after is explicitly listed, and that's only inheritances that you become entitled to receive, property from a dissolution of marriage, or certain beneficiary payments as part of a death benefit or insurance -- within 180 days of filing. Anything that you had before filing, and that was exempted, is not property of the Estate and outside the reach of those assets. Even if you won the lottery the day after you filed, the Trustee has absolutely no rights to it, especially since it's not mentioned in 11 USC 541 (the section of code dealing with "property" of the bankruptcy estate).

Best wishes, and I hope that this information helps.

[torosnca]

Thank you so much for your detailed information....another question or two if you don't mind:

1. At the 341 meeting...should the Trustee ask: Have you filed for bankruptcy before? not sure how to respond..I filed for bankruptcy 15 years ago with my then husband..or do I say no(8 years is the ruling).

Will review the 11 USC 541.

My nerves are on edge...thanks so much for the valuable info.

[justbroke]

1. At the 341 meeting...should the Trustee ask: Have you filed for bankruptcy before? not sure how to respond..I filed for bankruptcy 15 years ago with my then husband..or do I say no(8 years is the ruling).

Yes, you answer YES! They are just making sure it wasn't within the 8 year window. Never ever answer no to that question since you have in fact filed before. They can very easily find out and if you were to answer no, they might decide to block your discharge since they may feel that you lied under oath. Or worse, they decide to scrutinize everything you've done down to the penny.

You should be able to relax. The hardest part, is actually submitting the petition!

[csonly]

At our 341, the trustee asked another debtor if he ever filed BK and he said yes, the UST asked how long ago, and the debtor said, 13 years ago, and there was nothing more said. I think if the UST states the question "did you file in the last 8 years", you would say no, or if they word it as "have you ever filed BK", I would say yes, 15 years ago or wait for the question of when you previously filed. As far as the time line, after our 341 went perfectly fine, report of no distribution the next day, no asset. A few days after the 341, the UST asked for 6 months of pay stubs and on day 13 after 341, we got a statement of presumption of abuse, which is pretty much routine if you are over median, which we are. My attorney continues to tell me that the UST has 60 days to convert, dismiss or file motion that the POA is inappropriate, but according to everything that I read the time line is broken down as 14 days for UST to file motion or statement for POA, the UST has 30 days after that to motion for dismissal, convert or motion as POA is inappropriate, and the creditors have 60 days to object. If anyone has hard evidence of this time frame, can you let me know where to find it? Again, 60 days from 341 is the magic number for everything, according to my attorney. Most posters seem to find the 341 painless. Ours lasted like 2 minutes. We went early to watch other cases, which helped as the "panel" trustee was pretty routine in his questioning, he did mix it up a bit, but the questions were basically the same. He also made the comment "we have 44 cases today, that shows the state of our economy." That actually made me feel better about having to file, so many more people are in the same boat!! Just relax and don't stress out too much about your 341, it will be over before you know it.

[torosnca]

Thank you all for clarification for my 341 meeting...I concur honesty is best... I have a tendency to read to into the question vs. taking it at face value and to the point.. Thanks again..