Meeting of Creditors - What Will Happen at the 341 Meeting

If you have ever considered filing for bankruptcy or have already filed for bankruptcy you have probably heard that you will be required to attend a 341 Meeting of Creditors. The thought of attending a court hearing is probably a little frightening to most people. The 341 hearing is a lot less frightening that you might imagine and for the most part will be a quick and formal process.

What is a 341 Meeting of Creditors?

The 341 Hearing is a meeting of creditors that is required by the bankruptcy code. You will be required to attend this hearing and provide proof of social security and a government issued identification. When a bankruptcy case is filed a trustee is assigned to your case. The trustees job is to review your case to ensure that no assets are being concealed, distribute any unprotected assets to creditors, and ensure that there is no fraud involved in the filing of your bankruptcy case. The 341 hearing allows the trustee to ask you questions about the documents that were filed in the case. The 341 hearing also allows creditors to attend the meeting and to ask questions about the administration of the assets and your debts. The meeting of creditors is not intended to allow creditors to engage is a large amount of questioning. The questions that creditors may ask are limited. If the creditors want to ask further questions they can always request a 2004 examination.

When Does the 341 Hearing Happen?

The 341 hearing is scheduled by the court once your bankruptcy case is filed. The Chapter 7 meeting of creditors will be scheduled anywhere from 20 to 40 days after the case is filed. For a Chapter 13 meeting of creditors the hearing will be scheduled 20 to 50 days after your case is filed. A notice of the scheduled date is mailed by the court to all of your creditors. The 341 hearing can be continued in some cases if the person cannot attend the initial 341 meeting. If it is continued the assigned trustee will provide you or your attorney with a continued date and in some instances inform your creditors.

What Happens at the 341 Meeting of Creditors?

You may be wondering what you should expect when you attend a 341 meeting of creditors? The meeting of creditors will be held at the federal bankruptcy court and is generally held in a large open room where the trustee sits at the front of the room and all scheduled debtor's sit in the room waiting for the trustee to call their name. If you an attorney, then they will be present with you at the hearing. Depending on how fast the trustee is and the schedule for the day you may be waiting to be called anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours.

When you are called by the trustee you will sit in front of the trustee and the sworn in. The trustee will then ask you for your social security and identification to verify your identity and social security. Once this process is complete he will confirm your address and ask you a serious of questions about the schedules and documents that you have filed with the court. Most trustees have very similar questions that they ask all debtors and they consist of the following:

Did you review the schedules and documents before you signed them?

Are the schedules and documents that you filed with the court accurate?

Did you list of your creditors?

Did you list all of your assets?

Did you sell or transfer any property in the last 2 years?

Do you owe any domestic support obligations (child support of alimony)?

Have you ever filed for bankruptcy before?

The trustee may ask you some questions that are specific to your particular case, but for most people the same questions will be asked by the trustee. The trustee may request additional documents from you or your attorney at this 341 Meeting of Creditors. Creditors rarely appear at these hearings and if they do their questions for the most part are limited. After your hearing is completed the trustee may conduct further investigation to determine if you qualify for a discharge in your bankruptcy case. After this hearing most people just need to await their discharge papers.

Your 341 hearing is a lot less frightening than what you would expect. Your attorney should help explain the process at the court and walk you through the steps.

When you attend your Meeting of Creditors it is required that you bring identification and your social security.You  may not realize that one of these items is missing until right before your hearing date. Relax, there is a solution for this. I have clients have this problem all the time. Although you should be prepared, these things happen in life.

First, if you lost or misplaced your social security and don't have enough time to have another one issued before your 341 hearing then there are alternatives you can use. You can use the following:

• Current W-2 Form
• IRS Form 1099
• Social Security Administration Report - You can go the local Social Security office and report that verifies your social security. You can do it on the same day as your hearing as they will issue it to you right away.

If you lost your driver's license then you can use these alternatives to verify your identify:

• Any government or state issued ID
• Student ID
• Military ID
• U.S. Passport
• Legal Resident Alien Card

As a last resort, the trustee will continue your 341 hearing if you don't have proof of social security or identification.