Can I File My Own Chapter 7?

Any individual can file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection, and you don't have to be an attorney to do so. While a local bankruptcy attorney can certainly offer you insight into local practices and customs, along with an overall sense of how bankruptcy operates, the courts provide you with all the forms and instructions that you may need. However, if you make the slightest procedural error, the court has the ability to dismiss your case.

Understand the Bankruptcy Process

As long as you understand the bankruptcy process, you may be able to save on attorney's fees and file your own Chapter 7. Essentially, Chapter 7 bankruptcy is an exercise in paperwork. You must complete all the forms and schedules that the court requires, and you must submit all requested documents in a timely fashion. Beyond that, all you have to do is appear once before the bankruptcy trustee for a review of what you have submitted before you can be on your way to your discharge. You must be acutely aware of everything that the court requires, however, and ensure that you submit documents within the time limits imposed by the federal rules of bankruptcy procedure.

Be Ruthlessly Honest and Thorough

If you leave out any information from your bankruptcy petition, the penalties can range from the dismissal of your case all the way to a criminal charge of bankruptcy fraud. For this reason, the United States Courts have a separate section on their website outlining the pitfalls of filing without an attorney. When you hire an attorney, he will know exactly what the court requires on each bankruptcy schedule. When you file without an attorney, or pro se, you are on your own regarding what to include in your petition. The court may not look kindly on a petition you submit, signed under the penalty of perjury, attesting to something that is not true. For example, if you forgot to include a ring that you haven't worn in 10 years on your petition, the court could see this as fraudulent, even though it may have been an innocent mistake on your part.

Verify That You Qualify

Determining whether you even qualify to file bankruptcy can be a difficult exercise. In a general sense, you cannot file Chapter 7 bankruptcy if you have a high enough income to pay your debts. Calculating what exactly is a high enough income in the eyes of the court requires preparation and computation on Bankruptcy Form 22A, also known as the means test. If you file your own Chapter 7, you will have to determine whether you qualify using this test. If your income suggests that you should file a Chapter 13 repayment plan instead, your case will become even more complicated.

Don't Overlook Local Rules

One of the confounding things about filing Chapter 7 on your own is that you have to learn and understand local court rules, in addition to federal rules. Each bankruptcy district has a list of forms and procedures that you must follow if you file in that district. While you can usually find a list of local rules on local court websites, you may still not even know where to look if you file your own Chapter 7. For example, the Central Bankruptcy District of California has nine separate sections of local rules, and four additional appendices.

References

• United States Courts: Chapter 7 Bankruptcy
• NOLO: Chapter 7 Bankruptcy -- Who Can't File?
• NOLO: A Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Overview
• United States Courts: Filing For Bankruptcy Without An Attorney
• United States Bankruptcy Court Central District of California: Local Bankruptcy Rules and Forms
• United States Courts: Bankruptcy Form 22A