Most people who file for bankruptcy usually have a large number of credit cards in addition to their other debts. In many cases, the interest on credit card debt is what pushed them to the brink of bankruptcy. People who are addicted to using their credit cards usually have a favorite credit card and try to keep a lower balance so they don’t lose the ability to load on that account. Everyone else is maxed out and has reached a point where they can no longer afford to live while making the minimum payments on these credit card balances. Many times, a person will try to set aside and not include in the bankruptcy filing that special credit card that they never used or still has available credit on. Although, in theory, everything sounds good, but when the bankruptcy lawyer tells his client to list all his debts, he means all of them. The last thing a bankruptcy attorney wants is to be surprised at the creditors’ meeting by the bankruptcy trustee asking why this account was not disclosed. It is embarrassing for the bankruptcy attorney and could have ramifications for how the bankruptcy proceeds from there.

Many people in the bankruptcy process don’t realize that most creditors continually search for bankruptcy filings and then check the names against their own database. When a name comes up, check the social security number, and if it matches, the account will be closed anyway. So someone who thinks they can be sneaky and hang on to one credit card while paying off all their other debt is foolish. Technology has made this virtually impossible for the debtor to get away with. Once you are caught for failing to disclose debts in your bankruptcy petition, the bankruptcy trustee will take a much closer look at all schedules, including a person’s assets and the bankruptcy exemptions that protect them. The bankruptcy attorney will be on the defense to get you out of a hole with a bankruptcy trustee.

The court wants people who file bankruptcy to be completely honest if they plan to receive this discharge of debt. Once that trust is broken, the court will question everything else in the bankruptcy petition. It also breaks the trust of the bankruptcy attorney with his client. First, if the bankruptcy attorney finds out about the hidden credit card at the 341 meeting, he won’t know what else his client is hiding from him. When that trust is broken, the bankruptcy attorney might even leave them as clients.

This is important for a person filing for bankruptcy if they want to be successful. Include all the information and let the bankruptcy attorney decide if it is important or if there is a legal way to fix the situation. Many times there is a solution that the client wouldn’t even know about and would avoid the embarrassment of getting caught in a lie.