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Asked 7 months ago - Denver, CO
FlagI am filing Pro Se for my chapter 7 bankruptcy and need to know if I need to include the account balance in my 401K, if so does this go under section 12 in Schedule B, if not where does this information go? Also, do i need to include my life insurance policy?
You need to list ALL your debts and ALL your assets. This is the first question the Chapter 7 Trustee is going to ask you and you must be able to truthfully state that you did.
All property that is not real estate (houses, land, etc) is listed on Schedule B. This includes life insurance policies that have a cash surrender value. If you want to keep the property you also need to list the appropriate exemption on Schedule C. If it is not exempt then the Chapter 7 Trustee will take the property and use it to satisfy your debts.
If you were thinking you could get away with lying on listing any asset in your bankruptcy, think again. Or better still, find a competent bankruptcy attorney to do your thinking for you.
Going into bankruptcy is like going into an audit with the IRS. The bankruptcy court is part of the US Justice Department & is a sister agency to the FBI. There is very little that even a cursory review about you on the government databases won't reveal, from where you have bank accounts to property you own overseas, to what you have covered on your homeowners insurance policy.
Hope this perspective helps!
Hiring an attorney is advisable and very wise. It is like doing brain surgery on yourself even if you are a doctor. If a mistake is made it sometimes cannot be undone if it is serious. Hiring a competent attorney will protect you and your assets. All assets and liabilities must be listed and fully disclosed. If you don't exempt the property the trustee can also liquidate it to pay creditors.
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