bankruptcy trustee helps with financial issues
The role of a bankruptcy trustee is to provide a link between the bankruptcy court and the debtor, and as such, the trustee has various tasks to perform. The trustee is impartial, and can advise the debtor as to their rights and obligations. The trustee is also responsible for liquidating any assets the debtor owns which are not exempt from bankruptcy. These funds are then used by the trustee to pay the creditors. Obviously the trustee can only liquidate property that is free from liens, and is not under bankruptcy protection.
The trustee is paid for handling the bankruptcy by the debtor, which depending on the complexity of the debtors finances can be very time consuming. Any funds that the debtor is required to pay during the bankruptcy period are collected by the trustee, and are then dispersed by the trustee to the various creditors.
The trustee needs to be provided with a complete list of the creditors the debtor owes, along with the amounts and the nature of the debts. Along with this, the debtor has to provide details of all income, and how frequently income is received. This income needs to include a spouses whether or not this spouse is also filing for bankruptcy, as the trustee needs to be able to assess the household income. If the trustee requests extra information, it is important that the debtor responds in a timely fashion with the appropriate information, and so make the job of the trustee as easy as possible.
The trustee also needs to be given the debtor’s details of monthly living expenses, in other words, details accommodation, food, clothing, medications and so on. Again this should include expenses for the whole household, but the bankruptcy trustee can clarify who this includes if you have several family members employed and living in the same accommodation. The job of the bankruptcy trustee is to ensure that the debtor fully understands the terms of bankruptcy, and the effects on the debtors credit rating once the debts have been discharged.
Note that in Alabama and North Carolina, bankruptcy administrators perform similar tasks to bankruptcy trustees in the other States of the US, and the Canadian bankruptcy trustees.
Also note that the bankruptcy trustee is there to answer the debtor’s questions about bankruptcy, but also represents the creditors, and the trustees aim is to return to the creditors as much in the way of funds as is possible under the circumstances.
