Please do not copy the contents of the above Sample Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Petition verbatim. It should be used only as an exemplar. Regardless, it should be instructive and help you fill out your Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Petition in 2017 and perhaps even somewhat instructive as things change in the years ahead.

My primary aim with posting this sample Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition is to help Pro Se Debtors who often cannot afford a bankruptcy attorney. However, if you feel you need the help of a qualified bankruptcy attorney or have any additional questions, I am here to help.

I also often recommend Nolo’s How to File For Chapter 7 Bankruptcy which is a solid and inexpensive resource that can also be found in most public libraries.

Please do not copy the contents of the above 2016 Sample Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Petition verbatim. It should be used only as an exemplar. Regardless, it should be instructive and help you fill out your Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Petition in 2016 and perhaps even somewhat instructive as things change in the years ahead.

The self-help desk at the United States Bankruptcy Court in Woodland Hills where I often lecture is an excellent resource to gain additional help in filing for bankruptcy. I will be very proud in 2016 to continue, as I have for many years, to volunteer for the Public Counsel’s Debtor Assistance Project. 

I hope this sample Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition empowers you as a Pro Se Debtor (not represented by a bankruptcy attorney) in helping to answer your questions about how to complete a Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition. However, if you decide you need to retain bankruptcy counsel, please make sure to get the help and attention you need. The experience and insight of a good bankruptcy attorney is a valuable thing and can help you avoid the countless ways your bankruptcy can go awry.

If you still need some additional help and hiring a bankruptcy attorney is simply not feasible, I often recommend Nolo’s incredible resource on the topic of How to File For Chapter 7 Bankruptcy. It is one of the most comprehensive and inexpensive resources on the topic. It is also found in most public libraries.

UPDATED Sample Bankruptcy Petition:

• Sample Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Petition 2017

Please do not copy the contents of the above Sample Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Petition verbatim. It should be used only as an exemplar. Regardless, it should be instructive and help you fill out your Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Petition.

The self-help desk at the United States Bankruptcy Court in Woodland Hills where I often lecture is an excellent resource to gain additional help in filing for bankruptcy. I am very proud to volunteer for the Public Counsel’s Debtor Assistance Project on a weekly basis. 

I believe firmly in empowering Pro Se Debtors and helping to answer their questions, but if you decide you need bankruptcy counsel please make sure to get the help and attention you need. The experience and insight of a good bankruptcy attorney is a valuable thing and can help you avoid the countless ways your bankruptcy can go awry.

If you still need some additional help and hiring a bankruptcy attorney is simply not feasible, I often recommend Nolo’s incredible resource on the topic of How to File For Chapter 7 Bankruptcy. It is one of the most comprehensive and inexpensive resources on the topic.  It is also found in most public libraries.

UPDATED Sample Bankruptcy Petition

• Sample Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Petition 2017

I continue to see Pro Se Debtors huddled around this Sample Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Petition at the United States Bankruptcy Court in Woodland Hills where I lecture on Thursdays. It remains routine to see Pro Se Debtors return 2-3 times to self-help to gain additional insight into how to fill out their petitions.

Of course, the material is also hopefully helpful as a sample to ALL debtors wherever you may reside given the general uniformity of these forms in the federal bankruptcy courts.

Below is a copy of the current 2013 Sample Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Petition for your view and use:

Do not copy this information down verbatim. It should be uses only as an exemplar. Regardless, it should be instructive and help you fill out your Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Petition.

The self-help desk is an excellent resource and I am very proud to volunteer for the Public Counsel’s Debtor Assistance Project on a weekly basis.  I believe firmly in empowering Pro Se Debtors and helping to answer their questions, but if you decide you need bankruptcy counsel please make sure to get the help and attention you need.  The experience and insight of a good bankruptcy attorney is a valuable thing and can help you avoid the countless ways your bankruptcy can go awry.

If you still need some additional help and hiring a bankruptcy attorney is simply not feasible, I often recommend Nolo’s incredible resource on the topic of How to File For Chapter 7 Bankruptcy.  It is one of the most comprehensive and inexpensive resources on the topic.  It is also found in most public libraries.

UPDATED Sample Bankruptcy Petition:

• Sample Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Petition 2017

It will be my honor in 2013 to continue my volunteer work at the Woodland Hills Bankruptcy Court “Self-Help Desk.” I will be giving seminars at the Woodland Hills Bankruptcy Court on Thursdays.

Here is the updated sample Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Petition from which I have prepared to lecture. Though the sample has not yet been approved and may be modified further, I thought it worthwhile to give you a sneak peak:

As a little background, the Bankruptcy “Self-Help Desk” Project is provided free of charge as a joint project of Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County, the San Fernando Valley Bar Association, the Central District Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys Association, and the Public Counsel Law Center’s Debtor Assistance Project.

I’ll look forward to seeing some of you at the San Fernando Valley Bankruptcy Court’s “Self-Help Desk.”

If you don’t respond to a lawsuit within 30 days of personal service, a default judgment may be obtained. Once a creditor has a default judgment, the creditor will give the default judgment to the Sheriff and the Sheriff serves you and employer papers to which you have ten days to respond otherwise your wages will be garnished. Many debtors will wait until their wages are actually garnished after ten days prior to consulting a bankruptcy attorney. This is very bad idea.

Upon receiving a wage garnishment order, the best approach is to immediately consult with a bankruptcy attorney. If you file bankruptcy within the ten days, you can stay the garnishing of your wages.

The Woodland Hills foreclosure trend year-over-year is pretty flat from the standpoint of Notices of Default.  Notices of Default are only down 5.26%.  On the other hand, Notices of Sale are off 25.00% in the same time period. Compared to Lancaster or Palmdale who experienced significant decreases in Notices of Default the modest 5.26% is a pretty modest.  I think it would be fair to say that things never got quite as bad in Woodland Hills even at the height of the recession and the housing bubble burst so this might help explain the discrepancy.

By the way, Foreclosure Radar is great service which provides incredibly detailed data on foreclosures pretty much anywhere you could imagine and I have them to thank for all these neat graphs.

Notices of Default are down 15.96% (213 to 179) from the prior month and 26.34% from the prior year (243 to 179).  Bucking the downward trend, Notices of Sale were UP for the month of April (182 to 193), but over the course of the last 12 months are down 35.45% from the prior year (299 to 193).

Unlike Palmdale, where the Time to Foreclose was significantly higher, the Time to Foreclose in Lancaster was relatively flat. In the prior 12 months, the Time to Foreclose was up, but only slightly by 7.94% or 277 days in April 2010 compared to 299 days in April 2011.

Again, the inescapable impression is things are getting better, but this does not diminish the pain that is still all too prevalent in our community in Lancaster. Interestingly, Palmdale seems to have improved a little more than Lancaster in comparison to my Palmdale Foreclosures post, but improvement is improvement. I know I am still hard at work as a bankruptcy attorney representing the interest of many debtors in Lancaster and throughout the Antelope Valley.

Interestingly, the time to foreclose in Palmdale has been gradually increasing and now sits at 347 days on average which is an increase of 18.43% from the prior year.

In general, it seems things are getting better in Palmdale and other areas in the Antelope Valley although slower than we would all like.

According to the US Air Force Academy website:

“The amount of your unpaid debts, by itself, may jeopardize your clearance, even if you don’t file bankruptcy. In that sense, not filing for bankruptcy may make you more of a security risk due to the size of your outstanding debts. By the same token, using a government-approved means of dealing with your debts may actually be viewed as an indication of financial responsibility. Eliminating your debts through bankruptcy may make you less of a security risk.”

Thus, if your debt and credit is affecting your security clearance at Edward Air Force Base or elsewhere, bankruptcy is an option to be considered.