NJ Bankruptcy 341 Hearing Info

How to prepare:

Hearings are informal and held in a public meeting room with you and the trustee at a conference table and with us at your side.

COVID-19 UPDATE: As of March 2020, hearings have been conducted either the phone or by video conference.

The trustee wilk ask to see your identification (see below) and then ask a few basic questions before asking specific questions he/she may have about your financial information provided on the petition.

Please review the sample questions below before you arrive so you will not be surprised by anthing you are asked.

The hearings usually take not longer than 5 minutes but often we will have to wait for your case to be called. Please allow at least one hour for the hearing.

When to arrive:

It is imperative that you arrive or call-in to the phone conference line or the video conference log-in 15 minutes prior to your hearing time.

Prior to the hearing: We will give you a quick briefing just prior to the hearing and of course you can ask us any questions you might have at that time. If the hearing is by phone or video conference, we will call you 15 - 30 minutes prior to the hearing to brief you.

How Long Will It Take?

Once your case is called, the hearing will last no more than a few minutes.

Cases are grouped into half-hour time slots. On the hour and half-hour, the trustee usuallly calls the list of all cases for that time slot to be sure each person is in attenance. If you are not in attendance when the list is called, the trustee may mark you as absent or put you at the end of the list which wastes your time and our time. Please be on the call early so this does not happen.

Sample Questions for 341 hearings:

1. State your name and current address for the record.

2. Please provide your picture ID and Social Security number card for identification.

3. Did you sign the petition, schedules, statements, and related documents and is the signature your own? Did you read the petition, schedules, statements, and related documents before you signed them?

4. Are you personally familiar with the information contained in the petition, schedules, statements and related documents? To the best of your knowledge, is the information contained in the petition, schedules, statements, and related documents true and correct? Are there any errors or omissions to bring to my attention at this time?

5. Are all of your assets identified on the schedules? Have you listed all of your creditors on the schedules?

6. Have you previously filed bankruptcy? (If so, the trustee must obtain the case number and the discharge information to determine the debtor(s) discharge eligibility.)

7. What is the address of your current employer?

8. Is the copy of the tax return you provided a true copy of the most recent tax return you filed?

9. Do you have a domestic support obligation? To whom? Please provide the claimant=s address and telephone number, but do not state it on the record. Are you current on your post-petition domestic support obligations?

10. Have you filed all required tax returns for the past four years?

SAMPLE GENERAL QUESTIONS (To be asked when deemed appropriate.)

1. Do you own or have any interest whatsoever in any real estate? If owned: When did you purchase the property? How much did the property cost? What are the mortgages encumbering it? What do you estimate the present value of the property to be? Is that the whole value or your share? How did you arrive at that value? If renting: Have you ever owned the property in which you live and/or is its owner in any way related to you?

2. Have you made any transfers of any property or given any property away within the last one year period (or such longer period as applicable under state law)? If yes: What did you transfer? To whom was it transferred? What did you receive in exchange? What did you do with the funds?

3. Does anyone hold property belonging to you? If yes: Who holds the property and what is it? What is its value? 4. Do you have a claim against anyone or any business? If there are large medical debts, are the medical bills from injury?

4. Are you the plaintiff in any lawsuit? What is the status of each case and who is representing you?

5. Are you entitled to life insurance proceeds or an inheritance as a result of someone's death? If yes: Please explain the details. If you become a beneficiary of anyone's estate within six months of the date your bankruptcy petition was filed, the trustee must be advised within ten days through your counsel of the nature and extent of the property you will receive. FRBP 1007(h)

6. Does anyone owe you money? If yes: Is the money collectible? Why haven't you collected it? Who owes the money and where are they?

7. Have you made any large payments, over $600, to anyone in the past year?

8. Were federal income tax returns filed on a timely basis? When was the last return filed? Do you have copies of the federal income tax returns? At the time of the filing of your petition, were you entitled to a tax refund from the federal or state government ? If yes: Inquire as to amounts.

9. Do you have a bank account, either checking or savings? If yes: In what banks and what were the balances as of the date you filed your petition?

10. When you filed your petition, did you have: a. any cash on hand? b. any U.S. savings bonds? c. any other stocks or bonds? d. any certificates of deposit? e. a safe deposit box in your name or in anyone else's name?

11. Do you own an automobile? If yes: What is the year, make, and value? Do you owe any money on it? Is it insured?

12. Are you the owner of any cash value life insurance policies? If yes: State the name of the company, face amount of the policy, cash surrender value, if any, and the beneficiaries.

13. Do you have any winning lottery tickets?

14. Do you anticipate that you might realize any property, cash or otherwise, as a result of a divorce or separation proceeding?

15. Have you been engaged in any business during the last six years? If yes: Where and when? What happened to the assets of the business?

These are sample questions representative of what the trustee may ask. If the trustee deems it appropriate, he or she may ask other questions and request additional documents which will have to be submitted promptly after the hearing.

Any testimonial or endorsement does not constitute a guarantee, warranty, or prediction regarding the outcome of your legal matter

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The 341 Hearing

What To Bring

Hearing Locations/Directions

Directions to all hearing locations

Sample Questions