Bankruptcy Advice and Bankruptcy InformationNo matter the skill and experience of a bankruptcy attorney, it is ultimately the client who determines how long and difficult the bankruptcy process is. There are several ways in which the client can assist his or her attorney in preparing their bankruptcy petition.Be Organized:A lot of the difficulty when filing a Chapter seven bankruptcy occurs in putting together all the documentation. Your bankruptcy attorney will need copies of the most recent two years tax returns (federal and state), copies of titles to any vehicles you own, and copies of deeds for any real estate you own or have transferred recently. Your attorney will also need copies of the most recent six months worth of bank statements (for any bank accounts you have) and the most recent six months of pay stubs (if you are employed). If you are receiving domestic support (alimony or child support), your attorney will need to see a copy of your divorce decree or other court document establishing what you are to be paid. Depending on the specifics of your case, he may ask for other documents as well. Its not simple, but the more you are prepared with the correct documents, the easier the bankruptcy case filing will be for you and your bankruptcy lawyer.Be Aware:Your Bankruptcy Lawyer will probably require that a three station report of your credit and they will have the software to do it for you.. While this option may cost a small fee, it is highly recommended. Most attorneys use services that provide a comprehensive review of all three credit bureaus, including full account numbers, amounts owed, and contact information for creditors. This information will be automatically uploaded Clients do have the option of compiling this information themselves, but it can be difficult and time consuming. While the free annual credit report will contain most of the information gathered by your attorney’s service, most, if not all, of the “free credit report” companies advertised on TV and the internet are insufficient. That is because they do not provide full account numbers, which are necessary for the bankruptcy petition.Remember, what ever direction you go, understand that many creditors do not send your credit information to the major credit reporting bureaus’. Who ever you owe money to regardless of their relation to you or if they have tried to collect the debt from you, many of your creditors may not be contained in. By having an idea of who you owe money to and how much you owe them, these creditors can be easily added into your bankruptcy petition to ensure that you discharge all of your eligible debts.Be Honest:Your attorney is here to help you complete this process, but he is neither a miracle worker nor a mind reader. He or she is fully capable of helping you find solutions to your problems, but he cannot work on problems he or she does not know about. When your attorney asks you for information, it is critical to be open and honest. You may find some of the questions to be prying, or just find the bankruptcy process to be embarrassing, but you must not let that stop you from giving honest and complete answers to your attorney. Your bankruptcy is not an adversarial process, but it is monitored by the Federal Bankruptcy Judge and Federal Bankruptcy Trustee assigned to your case, along with the Trustees’ Office. In your bankruptcy petition you should provide complete and forthcoming answers to help dispel the look of dishonesty, example is not disclosing property, which may create inquires from the bankruptcy court or cause a problem in your case..Be Ready:The largest problem with filing your bankruptcy is not having payment. The bankruptcy rules require that your chapter seven bankruptcy must pay your attorney all that is due.. Be ready to pay your attorney up front or be ready to have a plan in place for how you will pay for your case.Be Educated:In advance of filing your chapter seven bankruptcy there is the requirement that you take a bankruptcy credit counseling class.. The credit counseling course is required under bankruptcy law, and the credit counseling certification is attached to your original bankruptcy filing. In addition, after you file, but before you are discharged, you must complete a Debtor Education Course, also mandated by law. If you don’t finish the first credit counseling course your bankruptcy cant be filed. If you don’t finish the second bankruptcy class your bankruptcy case may not be completed. Your attorney will be able to provide you with options on how to complete your required education courses.Be Responsive:Connected to all of the above, the best way to assist your attorney and smooth out the process is to be responsive. The quicker you answer your bankruptcy lawyers inquiries and provide him documents, the quicker the whole process is. This includes returning phone calls or emails and scheduling (and showing up on time) to appointments. Being responsive, along with the other tips presented here can be the difference between your bankruptcy filing taking a couple of days to prepare or a couple of months to prepare. You, the client, more than any other factor, determine how it will play out.