What Should I Expect At My §341 Creditors’ Meeting?

Section 341 of the Bankruptcy Code requires all debtors to appear at a Creditors’ Meeting as one of the first steps in their case. The purpose of the meeting is to give creditors and the Trustee the opportunity to question the debtor about the information included in their statements and schedules as well as determine the debtor’s intentions. In reality, creditors seldom appear at the meeting which makes things much simpler. Rather, the Trustee appointed to the case by the U.S. Department of Justice conducts the meeting.

Since COVID, the meetings are conducted by Zoom video conferencing software. If you are a pro with Zoom, you just need to open Zoom at join.zoom.us and insert the Meeting ID and passcode included in Box 7 “Meeting of creditors” in your Notice of Bankruptcy Case document (Official Form B 309 for chapter 7 and Official Form 3091 for chapter 13) that you received in the mail. If you are not as familiar with Zoom, you can go to the Trustee’s website at https://www.justice.gov/ust/page/file/1590011/dl, or you can find a teenager, friend or family member to help you. If all else fails, consult your attorney. Remember that this is a somewhat formal meeting in which you will need to be attentive. Do not drive your car or take part in any other activities while you meet with the Trustee.

Once you are signed into Zoom, you most likely will be put in a Zoom “waiting room” or just hang out until your case is called. Be patient. Most likely, there are several cases scheduled for the same time slot as you are, so there may be some delay in calling your case.

When your case is called, you will be connected with the Trustee and your attorney. The first order of business is to put you under oath to ensure that your answers are true and correct to your knowledge. Then the Trustee will confirm your identity and Social Security number. Many Trustees require your attorney to provide these prior to the meeting so they can confirm them during the meeting. The Trustee will most likely confirm these items on the recording of the meeting. Since the meeting is recorded, it is important to provide verbal responses to the questions as opposed to nodding your head.

The main part of the meeting will most likely begin with a confirmation that you provided truthful information to your attorney in order to prepare the submitted documents, that you reviewed the documents before they were filed and that you signed the documents under penalties of perjury as being true and correct to the best of your knowledge. You may also be asked whether any changes need to be made.

The rest of the meeting provides the Trustee with an opportunity to question specific parts of the documents that may need clarification. Do you still work for the same employer? Do you expect to receive an inheritance? Are you entitled to a recovery from a personal injury claim? Did you claim pet expenses on your expense schedule but not list a pet as an asset? You get the idea. At times, the Trustee may not find it necessary to delve into these topics, but you should not feel as if you are being singled out if he or she does probe you in these areas.

If any creditors appear, they will be given a brief opportunity to ask you questions. Since several meetings are scheduled within a time slot, the Trustee will limit the time for such questions as creditors have other means to obtain the information they may feel is relevant. However, all of these efforts to gather information will go through your attorney since you are protected from direct contact by your creditors due to the automatic stay.

If the Trustee did not get all the information, he or she believes is necessary to administer the case, the meeting can be extended to another day. In most cases, the meeting is closed at the end and the Trustee files any relevant reports. Often you will walk away from the creditors’ meeting and think that it was not nearly as bad as you had expected. Your attorney should be able to answer any questions that you have and obtain any information that the Trustee needs. Your case then continues into the other phases of a bankruptcy.