How to actually file forms pro se?

[Joe Farmer]

Can they be hand filled out? What about the matrix? I think I recall something of a specific format? Do you just take them to the window, with the fee, and tell them you are filing a BK? thanks.

[Joe Farmer]

More questions on pro se:

Can a pcket of all the forms be found? I have all the detailed information I need for every line of every form, it's just the technicality I would like some input on. Filing in 2 weeks. CH7. Thanks.

[rfassett]

Search your district's website, you may find the information there that you are looking for. We filed pro se but used an internet preparer which gave us filled out forms and instructions for filing and where to find the local filing nuances. Electronic filing is required in our district so I had to dump everything on a CD and then I just put it in a fed ex envelope and next day it appeared on pacer with an assigned number.

[Joe Farmer]

An internet preparer?

What is this, where do I find one? Thanks.

[deafbroke]

Call the bankruptcy court you're going to file in. They have they're own set of rules as far as being written, or typed.
An example is the court I filed in wanted the Matrix typed out, abreviated as much as possible, city, state, and zip all on one line and everything centered on pages, and only 2 lines seperating each creditor, not one, not three, but two. Call your court and they will give you detailed info.
Now that that is said, I too filed pro se, and I would never do it again. The trustee was kicking our butts in taking property, money, and whatever he could. I hired a laywer and it looks like it will all be reversed. So my advice is check with many laywers and pick one to go with.It will save you a ton of grief later.

DB

[JRScott]

Bankruptcy Forms

Additional Reading

As the poster above mentioned you need to determine which Bankruptcy Court you are in and call the clerk for local forms, some clerks are helpful to pro se filers, some are not .

[danaf]

I wouldn't fill them out by hand. That being said - I'm not sure if it's allowed or not. I've seen attachments for personal property filled out by hand though.

check out 1clickbankruptcy.com. Someone from here told me about it and that's what I'm using. I also went down to my local bk court to use their pacer for free to see how the attorney's are filling the forms out which helped alot. Even so, there are a few remaining questions I have and am in the process of figuring out. I will say, doing this pro-se is not impossible but not easy either. I can certainly see why alot of people hire attorneys to do this. To be honest, when I first started filling out the paperwork, it seemed a daunting task. It's alot of work for someone unaccustomed to the law and the terms on the paperwork. But I'm 99% done and feel relatively confident that I've done a thorough job.

Originally I was going to use a document preparer but I changed my mind. I figured if I was filing pro-se, I really had to own what I submitted.

As another poster said, start at your state's bk website. From there, you can figure out how you need to proceed.