[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"detail-sidebar-cat-1-en-105":3,"doc-seo-200522-105":53,"doc-detail-200522-en":127},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",[7,14,19,24,29,34,39,44,49],{"id":8,"doc_module":9,"doc_module_name":10,"category_name":11,"show_sort_weight":12,"slug":13},11,1,"Template","Presentations",90,"presentations",{"id":15,"doc_module":9,"doc_module_name":10,"category_name":16,"show_sort_weight":17,"slug":18},12,"Resumes",80,"resumes",{"id":20,"doc_module":9,"doc_module_name":10,"category_name":21,"show_sort_weight":22,"slug":23},14,"Invoices",70,"invoices",{"id":25,"doc_module":9,"doc_module_name":10,"category_name":26,"show_sort_weight":27,"slug":28},15,"Posters",60,"posters",{"id":30,"doc_module":9,"doc_module_name":10,"category_name":31,"show_sort_weight":32,"slug":33},16,"Social Media",50,"social-media",{"id":35,"doc_module":9,"doc_module_name":10,"category_name":36,"show_sort_weight":37,"slug":38},17,"Forms",40,"forms",{"id":40,"doc_module":9,"doc_module_name":10,"category_name":41,"show_sort_weight":42,"slug":43},18,"Letters",30,"letters",{"id":45,"doc_module":9,"doc_module_name":10,"category_name":46,"show_sort_weight":47,"slug":48},21,"Paper Templates",5,"papers-templates",{"id":50,"doc_module":9,"doc_module_name":10,"category_name":51,"show_sort_weight":4,"slug":52},158,"General","general-158",{"code":4,"msg":54,"data":55},"ok",{"site_id":56,"language":57,"slug":58,"title":59,"keywords":60,"description":61,"schema_data":62,"social_meta":120,"head_meta":122,"extra_data":124,"updated_unix":126},105,"en","completing-bankruptcy-schedules-to-keep-your-client-out-of-prison","Completing Bankruptcy Schedules to Keep Your Client Out of Prison","","The paper provides practical guidance for consumer bankruptcy attorneys on accurately completing bankruptcy schedules to protect clients from denial of discharge and other serious consequences. It stresses that the court relies on attorneys as a first line of defense against inaccurate or dishonest disclosures, and warns that hasty filings, incomplete records, or failure to verify key information can create lasting harm. It covers preparation steps from petition basics, to correct debtor identity and address handling, to schedules A and B, including ownership, valuations, and related form consistency.",{"@graph":63,"@context":119},[64,80,102],{"@type":65,"itemListElement":66},"BreadcrumbList",[67,71,74,77],{"item":68,"name":69,"@type":70,"position":9},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":72,"name":10,"@type":70,"position":73},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/",2,{"item":75,"name":41,"@type":70,"position":76},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/letters/",3,{"item":78,"name":59,"@type":70,"position":79},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/completing-bankruptcy-schedules-to-keep-your-client-out-of-prison/200522/",4,{"url":78,"name":59,"@type":81,"image":82,"author":87,"headline":59,"publisher":90,"fileFormat":93,"inLanguage":57,"description":61,"dateModified":94,"datePublished":95,"encodingFormat":93,"isAccessibleForFree":96,"interactionStatistic":97},"DigitalDocument",{"url":83,"@type":84,"width":85,"height":86},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/completing-bankruptcy-schedules-to-keep-your-client-out-of-prison/200522.png","ImageObject",442,249,{"name":88,"@type":89},"Maya Linwood","Person",{"url":68,"name":91,"@type":92},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-14","2026-09-04",true,{"@type":98,"interactionType":99,"userInteractionCount":101},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":100},"ViewAction",10,{"@type":103,"mainEntity":104},"FAQPage",[105,111,115],{"name":106,"@type":107,"acceptedAnswer":108},"Why do errors in bankruptcy schedules create serious risk for the client?","Question",{"text":109,"@type":110},"Mistakes in bankruptcy schedules can haunt the client and may even lead to denial of discharge. The court expects the attorney to ensure the information it sees is the truth.","Answer",{"name":112,"@type":107,"acceptedAnswer":113},"What disclosures must be made regarding non-filing spouses?",{"text":114,"@type":110},"Non-filing spouses’ assets must still be listed. Whether an item is property of the estate is for the judge, so the schedules should disclose those assets.",{"name":116,"@type":107,"acceptedAnswer":117},"What key items should be verified when preparing the petition?",{"text":118,"@type":110},"Use the debtor’s full legal name, verify marital status when last names differ, confirm prior names and any DBA from the last six years, and double-check Social Security numbers. Also ensure mailing addresses route correctly to avoid unintended disclosure.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":78,"og:type":121,"og:title":59,"og:site_name":91,"og:description":61},"article",{"robots":123,"canonical":78},"index,follow",{"doc_id":125,"site_id":56},200522,1788509208,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":128},{"doc_id":125,"user_id":129,"nickname":88,"user_avatar":130,"doc_module":9,"category_id":40,"category_name":41,"doc_title":59,"doc_description":61,"doc_content":131,"file_id":132,"file_url":133,"file_type":134,"file_size":135,"view_count":101,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":9,"is_downloadable":9,"audit_status":9,"page_count":136,"language":137,"language_code":57,"site_id":56,"html_lang":57,"table_of_contents":138,"faqs":139,"seo_title":140,"seo_description":61,"update_tm":126,"read_time":141},962084928432,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_155a257f0dc6eb9ab79c44ca47cae57d","“Completing Bankruptcy Schedules to Keep Your Client  \nOut of Prison”  \nBy  \nPam Stewart 2013 NACBA Spring Conference  \nPaper prepared by: Pamela L. Stewart  \nAttorney at Law  \n4635 Southwest Freeway, Suite 610  \nHouston, Texas 77027  \n713-622-3893  \nFax: 713-622-7908  \n[Pam@plstewart.com](Pam@plstewart.com)  \n(With portions reprinted with permission from Michael Baumer. Further reproduction is strictly prohibited.)  \nPrepare Schedules This Way-Not That Way!  \nWe all make mistakes-but mistakes in bankruptcy schedules can haunt you and your client! Your client may even be denied a discharge due to mistakes in the schedules. Bankruptcy, even what seems to be a simple case, can be complicated. Consumer bankruptcy practitioners need to know alot about so many areas of law-credit cards and personal loans, divorce and family law, taxes, means testing, house and car loans, exemptions, fraud, discharge and dischargeability, criminal law, litigation, ethics, and a whole host of other things.  \nAdd to this mix, clients’ sloppy records and the need to file an emergency filing due to apending foreclosure or repossession. Hasty filings often lead to sloppy schedules and statements being filed with the court.  \nRemember, the court looks to us as attorneys to ensure that what the court is seeing is the truth. We are the first line of defense against dishonest clients-and no one is in a better position to determine whether the schedules are truthful or not than the bankruptcy attorney. The 341 Meeting of Creditors is not the place to have someone proofread your schedules.  \nNon-filing spouses. You must list assets of non-filing spouses. As Charles Chestnutt, an attorney in Dallas said,“One does not choose not to disclose because that property is not property of the estate, because whether it is property of the estate is not up to the lawyer; it is up to the judge. And it stands to reason that if any issue is up to the judge, it should be disclosed.” A debtor in Houston was recently sentenced for failing to disclose the non-filing spouse’s assets.  \nWhere do you begin? Read the Bankruptcy Code, Bankruptcy Rules and your Local Bankruptcy Court Rules.  \nPetition  \nFirst, you need to understand venue and residency requirements. Venue is governed by 28 U.S.C. § 1408. Where has the debtor resided for the last 91 of the 180 days? Venue for filing a case is a different issue than the issue of which state’s exemptions will apply.  \nUse the debtor(s) full legal name-not nicknames. People tend to want to use whatever they go by-BJ when it is really William James. Don’t forget Juniors and IIIs.  \nIf a married couple with different last names, verify they are married. Finding out a the creditors meeting is not the time to discover they are not married.  \nIf the client is female, ask if she has had a different last name in the last six years. (Maiden or prior married.)  \nIf the debtor has had a dba in the last six years, list it-even if the debtor has never used the name.  \nMake sure the social security numbers are correct. It is a good idea to double check them when they are typed in and then make the clients check again when they sign their documents. Also, ask your client if he/she has used another Social Security number or Tax ID number. If so, they should also be disclosed.  \nMake sure your client understands that their mailing address is where the mail on their bankruptcy case is going to be sent. I have had several clients who used their office address as their mailing address because they didn’t want their kids to know they were filing and then got upset when their secretary opened their bankruptcy notice.  \nVerify if your client has filed a bankruptcy case in the last eight years. If so, make sure to list all of the cases even if you have to type in “See addendum” and attach an addendum listing the previous cases. This is a common omission in Chapter 13 cases and the trustee needs to know because some courts limit the time in a second Chapter 13 b","cbCaic66q0WDhAw6","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaic66q0WDhAw6","pdf",140606,24,"English","# Prepare Schedules This Way-Not That Way!\n## Why Accurate Schedules Matter\n## Non-filing Spouses Must Be Listed\n# Where Do You Begin?\n## Petition: Venue, Residency, and Debtor Identity\n## Petition: Prior Cases and Required Disclosures\n# Schedules\n## Schedule A - Real Property\n## Schedule B - Personal Property\n## Cash and Bank/PayPal Accounts","[{\"question\":\"Why do errors in bankruptcy schedules create serious risk for the client?\",\"answer\":\"Mistakes in bankruptcy schedules can haunt the client and may even lead to denial of discharge. The court expects the attorney to ensure the information it sees is the truth.\"},{\"question\":\"What disclosures must be made regarding non-filing spouses?\",\"answer\":\"Non-filing spouses’ assets must still be listed. Whether an item is property of the estate is for the judge, so the schedules should disclose those assets.\"},{\"question\":\"What key items should be verified when preparing the petition?\",\"answer\":\"Use the debtor’s full legal name, verify marital status when last names differ, confirm prior names and any DBA from the last six years, and double-check Social Security numbers. Also ensure mailing addresses route correctly to avoid unintended disclosure.\"}]","Completing Bankruptcy Schedules to Keep Your Client Out of Prison | PDF",8]