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7 Steps to a Fresh Start After Bankruptcy
Step #3: Comply with the legal requirements.
File your petition with the bankruptcy court serving in your area. If you are a business debtor, then file with the bankruptcy court in the place where the business was organized or has its principal place of business or principal assets.
In addition to the petition for bankruptcy, you are also required to submit the following:
*Sworn list of creditors
*Schedule of assets and liabilities
*List of exempt property
*Schedule of current income and expenditures
*Statement of financial affairs
*A schedule of executory contracts and unexpired leases.
In addition to submitting the above documents, you will also be required to surrender all your properties to the trustee, including a copy of the tax return or transcripts of the most recent tax year as well as tax returns filed during the case (including tax returns for prior years that had not been filed when the case began). (11 U.S.C. 521)
If you are an individual debtor with primarily consumer debts, there are additional filing requirements, such as:
*Certificate of credit counseling
*Copy of any debt repayment plan developed through credit counseling
*Evidence of payment from employers, if any, received 60 days before filing
*Statement of monthly net income and any anticipated increase in income or expenses after filing
*Record of any interest the debtor has in federal or state qualified education or tuition accounts
Your attorney should be able to advise you on how to deal with these required legal forms. All Official Forms may be purchased at legal stationery stores or downloaded from the Internet
at USCourts.gov/bkforms/index.html. They are not available from the court.
Step #4: Pay the necessary fees.
As with any other court cases, there are certain fees required, such as:
*Case filing fee (around $245)
*Miscellaneous administrative fee ($39)
*Trustee surcharge ($15)
Upon filing, you are normally asked to pay these fees to the clerk of court. However, you may ask the court’s permission to pay in installments. (28 U.S.C. 1930(a); Fed. R. Bankr. P. 1006(b); Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, Item 8). | 
