341...What To Expect?

[lilacs80]

Eeeks! My 341 is this Thursday!

[carlsbadmike]

It will most likely go much smoother than you are expecting. Good luck!

[Blueboy]

Good luck lilacs80

From my experience the only ones who should be nervous about a 341 is pro se filers, and then only if your paperwork isn't properly filled out.

[lilacs80]

Thanks guys! It's just around the corner and my nerves are starting to rattle.

[lilacs80]

Oh here's another question....it's probably silly.....should I put off in purchasing some vitamins until after the 341 or does it not matter if I buy them now or later?

[rpertusio]

Buy your vitamins. (But don't use your credit card.)

[lilacs80]

Buy your vitamins. (But don't use your credit card.)

Ok...just thought I run this through before buying. I'm a nervous wreck and worrywart so I'm treading lightly and carefully. Thanks!

[nceguyfromne]

My 341 experience

Hi Everyone,

I have my hearing scheduled for the 1st of July. What kind of questions will the trustees ask me? I have a simple list of standard questions that they ask all people. I haven't worked in 2 years...will they ask me why I am not working? Also, how long was the 341 hearing? My attorney never asked us for bank statements, only pay stubs of the last 4 months. I filed in California. How many months of bank statements will the trustees ask for? And I read that after 341 hearing, the paycheck will be docked by the trustess....how does that work? How much will they take? Oh, and this may seem to be a silly question....I have 2 dogs. Will they make me give up my dogs? They're not show dogs or anything of that sort but they are purebred and I bought them from a breeder. Thanks.

-- Lilacs

My 341 meeting lasted all of about 90 seconds. Besides the demographics, the trustee asked me 3 or 4 very simple questions as he flipped through my petition at a rate of about 2 pages per second. Only one of those questions required a response other than "yes, sir" or "no, sir" and he didn't bat an eyelash at my response. Before entering the room my attorney had advised me to keep my answers simple and offer no extra information unless it was specifically requested. If the trustee needs to know something, he will ask; otherwise, he doesn't need to know. Plain and simple.

As for creditors attending, there were none for me or the 7 other cases in the room with me. My understanding is that creditors typically reserve this for when collateral is involved and questions exist as to its whereabouts -- and even then it's uncommon. If a creditor feels they have grounds to object to a discharge, they will do so with a petition to the court, not to the trustee at the 341.

If you're losing sleep over your 341, definitely don't. It just may be the easiest part of the experience

[lilacs80]

My 341 meeting lasted all of about 90 seconds. Besides the demographics, the trustee asked me 3 or 4 very simple questions as he flipped through my petition at a rate of about 2 pages per second. Only one of those questions required a response other than "yes, sir" or "no, sir" and he didn't bat an eyelash at my response. Before entering the room my attorney had advised me to keep my answers simple and offer no extra information unless it was specifically requested. If the trustee needs to know something, he will ask; otherwise, he doesn't need to know. Plain and simple.

As for creditors attending, there were none for me or the 7 other cases in the room with me. My understanding is that creditors typically reserve this for when collateral is involved and questions exist as to its whereabouts -- and even then it's uncommon. If a creditor feels they have grounds to object to a discharge, they will do so with a petition to the court, not to the trustee at the 341.

If you're losing sleep over your 341, definitely don't. It just may be the easiest part of the experience

Thanks nceguyfromne! I'll try not to loose sleep over the 341, but it's so hard not to worry. My heart pounds every time I think about the 341. My atty also had advised me to keep my answers short and simple, and not offer any additional info or explanations. The one question that my atty pointed out that the trustee may ask me is why I'm not working.

That's good to know that creditors usually don't show up to the 341 hearing and they have to petition through the court. Watch of all people, my dentist shows up to hearing.

Wish me luck!

-- Lilacs

[nceguyfromne]

I wouldn't worry about your dentist. I am sure he has had plenty of others discharge debts owed to him and realizes that he has no grounds to object to the discharge unless you defrauded him, i.e. he has proof that you charged up a bunch of services within a very short time (~90 days) before your BK filing with the intent of never paying. Otherwise, he has no case. It doesn't matter how little or much you owe him, how badly he needs the money or how much he disagrees that you shouldn't have to pay. And if by some chance your dentist is really naive and does show up thinking it might do him some good, I am sure the trustee will limit his time to a few seconds and shut him down if he gets argumentative. The 341 is for fact-finding, not arguing a case. In my district trustees are given 8 cases to hear in a 30 minute period. There is no time allotted for screwing around.

[lilacs80]

I wouldn't worry about your dentist. I am sure he has had plenty of others discharge debts owed to him and realizes that he has no grounds to object to the discharge unless you defrauded him, i.e. he has proof that you charged up a bunch of services within a very short time (~90 days) before your BK filing with the intent of never paying. Otherwise, he has no case. It doesn't matter how little or much you owe him, how badly he needs the money or how much he disagrees that you shouldn't have to pay. And if by some chance your dentist is really naive and does show up thinking it might do him some good, I am sure the trustee will limit his time to a few seconds and shut him down if he gets argumentative. The 341 is for fact-finding, not arguing a case. In my district trustees are given 8 cases to hear in a 30 minute period. There is no time allotted for screwing around.

Oh good! That's really good to know! I had a huge relief when I read your reply. 8 cases in 30 minute period....I hope they move my case right along.

Omg...it's tomorrow! I'm still nervous though...I was pacing around last night until 2am. My atty told me to keep it casual, no need to dress up, jeans would be great. So even with that said, I was still pacing around in my closet. I wonder if I should just wear my chucks or a nice pair of ballet flats. Back to pacing....

[nceguyfromne]

Oh good! That's really good to know! I had a huge relief when I read your reply. 8 cases in 30 minute period....I hope they move my case right along.

Omg...it's tomorrow! I'm still nervous though...I was pacing around last night until 2am. My atty told me to keep it casual, no need to dress up, jeans would be great. So even with that said, I was still pacing around in my closet. I wonder if I should just wear my chucks or a nice pair of ballet flats. Back to pacing....

I understand... there is really no substitute for having gone through the experience. Once you're on the other side with those of us who've already done it, you'll feel better.

The truth is, you would probably know already if there were going to be problems with your case, because your attorney would have told you up front at the beginning of the process (based on his/her experiences with dozens or hundreds of other clients), or he/she would be receiving correspondence of some kind from creditors or the trustee indicating an issue. The 341 is largely a formality. Like registering to vote. We do it because otherwise we can't vote. Now I can't say things *never* happen, but by and large, those who do get the tough questions at their 341 were already expecting them, or their attorneys had told them to expect them. Chances are your case is probably just another in the batch. In that case and most others, the trustee's only interest is fulfilling his/her obligation to hold a 341 meeting for your case as provided by law.

I think you will also be surprised how informal of an environment this is going to be. It's not Bike Week, but it's not court either. It really is just a "meeting."

I'll be crossing my fingers for you. Looking forward to hearing how it goes!

[lilacs80]

I understand... there is really no substitute for having gone through the experience. Once you're on the other side with those of us who've already done it, you'll feel better.

The truth is, you would probably know already if there were going to be problems with your case, because your attorney would have told you up front at the beginning of the process (based on his/her experiences with dozens or hundreds of other clients), or he/she would be receiving correspondence of some kind from creditors or the trustee indicating an issue. The 341 is largely a formality. Like registering to vote. We do it because otherwise we can't vote. Now I can't say things *never* happen, but by and large, those who do get the tough questions at their 341 were already expecting them, or their attorneys had told them to expect them. Chances are your case is probably just another in the batch. In that case and most others, the trustee's only interest is fulfilling his/her obligation to hold a 341 meeting for your case as provided by law.

I think you will also be surprised how informal of an environment this is going to be. It's not Bike Week, but it's not court either. It really is just a "meeting."

I'll be crossing my fingers for you. Looking forward to hearing how it goes!

Ok, I'm back! We were the first case in our session! I was soooo nervous!

Our hearing was in this small private corporate building...think Silicon Valley. It wasn't even at a courthouse with metal detectors! So that completely threw me off guard because I was expecting a small court house where I have to pay cash for a car park.

Everyone was dressed fairly casual. There were a few couples here and there that were dressed very proper, very business. But most people were wearing whatever...jeans, polo, and sport shoes. So I'm glad I went in wearing a nice pair of jeans and a very plain top, and didn't feel out of place.

As for the actual hearing, we were the first case up! I was so nervous that when I was swearing in, I had to repeat "Yes" twice because the trustee couldn't hear me. From there, my husband answered all the questions. My atty's partner was there to represent us, and prepped us 10 minutes prior to our 341. So he pretty much ran the down routine and the list of questions that we'll be asked. I asked him about if this trustee will ask me about why I'm not working, he told me the trustee will not ask me that. And it turns out, the trustee didn't.

Also, during our prep, our atty told us that there's another question that the trustee has been asking all debtors this morning that's not on our prep sheet: Did you transfer or sell any asset or property in the last 4 years? We told our atty that my husband has traded in his car 2 years ago, and I sold my car 3 years ago. My atty told us, just answer that when the trustee ask you this question. So that's what we did. The only thing is that I didn't list down the sale of my car because it only asked if we sold or transfer any asset or property in the last 2 years or 6 months prior to filing. I have my fingers crossed that this won't be an issue in my case. If this was an issue, he would have made it known at our 341 hearing right? The trustee scrolled around in his laptop for a minute and then proceeded to state our driver's licenses and SSN cards. After that, we were done with our 341.

Oh, and there was a slight hiccup. My SSN on my papers didn't match my card...turns out they inverted the numbers when they were typing up the papers. Our atty told us, it's not an issue. The office will submit a petition for the correction and we wouldn't have to re-do the 341 or anything. So it's nothing to worry about.

I'm just relieved now that my 341 is done! YAY! I won't feel completely relaxed and home free until I get the official discharge. So in the meantime, I'm still keeping my fingers crossed!

Thanks for sharing your experience and advice! Truly appreciate it!

[nceguyfromne]

Ok, I'm back! We were the first case in our session! I was soooo nervous!

Our hearing was in this small private corporate building...think Silicon Valley. It wasn't even at a courthouse with metal detectors! So that completely threw me off guard because I was expecting a small court house where I have to pay cash for a car park.

Everyone was dressed fairly casual. There were a few couples here and there that were dressed very proper, very business. But most people were wearing whatever...jeans, polo, and sport shoes. So I'm glad I went in wearing a nice pair of jeans and a very plain top, and didn't feel out of place.

As for the actual hearing, we were the first case up! I was so nervous that when I was swearing in, I had to repeat "Yes" twice because the trustee couldn't hear me. From there, my husband answered all the questions. My atty's partner was there to represent us, and prepped us 10 minutes prior to our 341. So he pretty much ran the down routine and the list of questions that we'll be asked. I asked him about if this trustee will ask me about why I'm not working, he told me the trustee will not ask me that. And it turns out, the trustee didn't.

Also, during our prep, our atty told us that there's another question that the trustee has been asking all debtors this morning that's not on our prep sheet: Did you transfer or sell any asset or property in the last 4 years? We told our atty that my husband has traded in his car 2 years ago, and I sold my car 3 years ago. My atty told us, just answer that when the trustee ask you this question. So that's what we did. The only thing is that I didn't list down the sale of my car because it only asked if we sold or transfer any asset or property in the last 2 years or 6 months prior to filing. I have my fingers crossed that this won't be an issue in my case. If this was an issue, he would have made it known at our 341 hearing right? The trustee scrolled around in his laptop for a minute and then proceeded to state our driver's licenses and SSN cards. After that, we were done with our 341.

Oh, and there was a slight hiccup. My SSN on my papers didn't match my card...turns out they inverted the numbers when they were typing up the papers. Our atty told us, it's not an issue. The office will submit a petition for the correction and we wouldn't have to re-do the 341 or anything. So it's nothing to worry about.

I'm just relieved now that my 341 is done! YAY! I won't feel completely relaxed and home free until I get the official discharge. So in the meantime, I'm still keeping my fingers crossed!

Thanks for sharing your experience and advice! Truly appreciate it!

Congrats on getting this behind you!

The 4-year property transfer question is pretty standard. I got it too. I don't think you have anything to worry about paperwork-wise. If you forgot to list something in good faith, your lawyer can simply amend it to the petition if it becomes necessary. It will just cost you the $26 amendment fee charged by the court, which I'm sure is the least of your worries.

~60 more days and you're home free!

[lilacs80]

Congrats on getting this behind you!

The 4-year property transfer question is pretty standard. I got it too. I don't think you have anything to worry about paperwork-wise. If you forgot to list something in good faith, your lawyer can simply amend it to the petition if it becomes necessary. It will just cost you the $26 amendment fee charged by the court, which I'm sure is the least of your worries.

~60 more days and you're home free!

Thanks! So in the meantime, during this 60 days, are there things I should or should not buy? If I wanted to go on a mini vacation, can I do that? One of my best friends is expecting at the end of the month and I want to get her a really nice gift, is there a limit of how much I can spend?

The trustee also didn't ask us for bank statements. I know I've asked this a little earlier in the month about bank statements, but my atty got back to a couple of weeks ago telling me that I won't be needing to submit them. So he was right...we didn't need them.