To keep it simple, you need to disclose everything in your bankruptcy. This means that every debt and every asset that you own needs to go on those bankruptcy papers. A skilled bankruptcy attorney can help you with this effort. If you fail to provide the courts with the appropriate information, you could get in trouble with the law.

Your bankruptcy papers are signed under penalty of perjury, which means that when you put your signature on the, you are swearing that everything in them is true. One of the things your swearing to is that your forms are completely filled out. The forms say specifically that you need to disclose "all" property including income and debts. If you fail to complete your forms your case may be dismissed. If the court believes that you made false statements intentionally, you could be arrested and prosecuted for bankruptcy fraud.

The court evaluates bankruptcy mistakes on a case-by-case basis. The courts understand that you may make one or two honest mistakes in the stack of paperwork, and may let you correct these errors without making a big deal about it. If you leave out a significant portion of your debts or assets, the bankruptcy court may view this as carelessness and take it more seriously. If they suspect that you deliberately hid your assets or used a false Social Security number, it will probably come back to haunt you more profoundly than your current debt crisis.

The best way to avoid these problems is to hire a lawyer who can help you make sure that you have collected all necessary information. You will need to list every single creditor on your bankruptcy papers, even the creditors that you are frustrated by. You will also want to include all money that you anticipate receiving, such as judgments from lawsuits, inheritances, pensions, retirement funds, life insurance policies, annuities and more. If you want more information about bankruptcy and filings, call a trusted local bankruptcy attorney for assistance today!