Trustee objection- happen to you?

[GaPeach]

Our confirmation hearing is Jan 13. I got a letter on Dec 29 saying the trustee wants to deny the confirmation because the plan does not meet disposible income test. What I get from that is the the trustee wants us to pay more- is that right? Has anything like this ever happened to you. What's next? I have a call into my lawyer and waiting for her response. Is the case going to be dismissed or will the attorney and the trustee work this out before next Tuesday. I thought things were going alright and now I am worried.

[rrockinggramma]

it can definitely be worked out. Must be you have secured or priority debt that the trustee believes you won't be able to cover. Funding the plan is the basis of chapter 13's. So yes, you won't be dismissed. And yes, the trustee believes you have to pay more to meet your plan requirements.

Did a claim come in higher than expected?

[HHM]

Objections can be worked out.

Frankly, trustees file objections in 95% of cases (it is there job). Of those in which an objection is filed, less than 5% ever go before a judge.

It sounds like the trustee thinks you have more disposable income than listed in your plan and schedules. Your attorney will work it out with the trustee.

[Introuble2008]

Not necessarily that you'll have to pay more!!! We had that happen....and it wasn't because of us. Our attorney would NOT listen to us. He had our gross retirement income listed but did NOT put in that we pay taxes on it! Made a HUGE mistake. The trustee questioned us and I, once again, mentioned the taxes. The trustee rejected and had our attorney add the taxes ....we ended up paying $800.00 a month instead of $1400. !!!!

[justbroke]

If you're lucky, like I was, you'll have no Trustee objections.

[lrprn]

We had two trustee objections to our plan when we filed 2 1/2 years ago. Because we were the perfect test case for case law regarding the two areas of objections, we ended up with our lawyer and the trustee filing briefs, we had a hearing with the judge, our trustee, our lawyer, and ourselves about both objections, then our local bk court judge ruled on both trustee objections.

Our trustee objections were (1) whether it's permissable to pay back loan advances from a retirement fund and still actively contribute to a retirement fund (the trustee lost this one - we were allowed to do both); and (2) when there is a discrepancy between monthly disposable income showing on the Means Test vs. Schedules I&J, which takes precedence in calculating the monthly Ch 13 payment (trustee won this one - in our bk district, after our case was decided, Schedules I&J take precedence and so our monthly payment increased $150/month which we started paying when the objections were resolved and filed by the judge).

Dealing with the objections was a stressful time, but not because of the objections. Courts move at their own incredibly glacial pace, so it took 15 L-O-N-G months after filing to resolve both objections and have our Ch 13 finally confirmed. Our lawyer was fantastic, so he made the waiting much more bearable for us.

Keep in mind that if objections are made by your Ch 13 trustee or a creditor, you really have little control over what's going to happen. Your lawyer will discuss options with you and provide his/her best legal advice. Other than continuing to make your Ch 13 payments on time, there's nothing you can do personally make the objections disappear any faster. So do your best to not over-stress about this. Direct the energy into making a better family budget instead - it's time much better spent.

Objections are surviveable - we got through the two objections from our trustee and one more from our mortgage lender (that one was eventually thrown out by our judge ) so we came out ahead in the long run. You are likely to come out ahead as well. Hang in there!

[broncho14]

My Trustee filed an objection. We proposed to pay $830 and he asked for $1200. When I went to the 341 he said you have proposed $830 and we are going to need $1200. He then said your proposed budget looks very tight. He said you can accept the $1200 now and I will recommend Confirmation or me and your attorney can try to work this out. He then said that he really thought my budget was tight at $830 a month and he felt that he and my atorney needed to take another look at it. I said ok and he continued it for 60 days. When i got outside the courthouse I asked my attorney what happened and he said that someone on the Trustee's staff probably figured it up at $1200 but the Trustee did not think the plan would work so they would negotiate it out. I asked if I was going to have to go back to court and he said that there was a 99% chance I would not. The figure we were hoping for was $1100 a month but we got it down to $900. My attorney said that the Trustee felt that it was in the best interests of all parties that it be at $900. According to my attorney, the Trustee felt that if it was $1100 or $1200 then the plan had a greater chance of failure and it could cause more problems for all parties involved. We confirmed at $900 a month and no creditor filed an objection. In fact, about a third of my debt never had claims filed on it which means that those who did file a claim will get a higher percentage. I was very pleased with the process. I thought that my attorney did a great job and I thought that the Trustee was very fair.

[aa06a47]

I had 4 total objections in my case. Each time the trustee wanted more money. It was almost like a auction. He kept upping the bid. I finally told my attorney that we needed to set down and go back through all the schedules if he wanted more...and I was confirmed the next day. Not sure if it was because I was too easy the first 3 objections... Try and have your attorney fight for you. You would be surprised what the difference of 100 or more per month will make in your standard of living.