Step 5: Meeting of Creditors
This meeting is held about 4-6 weeks after your case is filed. Your attorney will accompany you. Normally, none of your creditors will be in attendance. Before that hearing we will send you a letter that explains that hearing and the basic questions asked that looks like this. Your hearing will last about 5-10 minutes -- at the most. There is nothing to worry about. We will have you prepared for the hearing. If you would like to listen to an example of this hearing click here.Following the filing of the bankruptcy you will need to complete the second debtor education class. It can be done over the phone or Internet. Olsen Olsen and Daines wholeheartedly endorses and recommends Evergreen Debt Counseling. They offer a five dollar discount to our clients. They are much easier to use than the competition and treat our clients very well. You will receive a discharge notice stating that your case is over around 60 days after the Meeting of Creditors if you filed a Chapter 7. If you are in a Chapter 13 you will continue making monthly payments until your plan is completed. We are and will always be available to talk with you about questions regarding your case. We have the answers! Call us now to begin the process or click on the icon to the right to chat live!
Listen to an audio message about the Meeting of Creditors.
Click on the play button below to hear a welcome message
What about taxes?
Many persons contemplating bankruptcy have unfiled tax returns or owe taxes. Some companies and individuals advertise nationally that they can help resolve IRS tax debt. For example, J.K. Harris, Roni Deutch, and Tax Masters advertise a lot. There are others. Before using any one of these companies Google their name and rip-off or fraud and see what comes up. This should be a warning. A local CPA or so called tax resolution expert, while they may be competent, do not have all the tools available to solve your tax problem. They will counsel you only within the parameters of what they can do - offers and compromise. You will eventually learn that their promises and charges are large but what they deliver is small or perhaps nonexistent. These persons only deal with "half the deck." They hold no Aces, Kings or Queens that are available through bankruptcy or chapter 13 to solve tax problems. They charge high fees up front with no promises. You need to know all the options that are available to solve your tax problemsWhat can we do?
- Through bankruptcy or chapter 13 we can discharge income taxes that are over three years old and have been assessed at least two years. We can pay taxes that are non dischargeable through chapter 13 over as long as five years eliminating penalties and interest! This drastically reduces the amount you owe. Tax levies or garnishments are immediately stopped. We know how to deal with tax liens. We can immediately stop garnishment and levies- IRS, state or local. We have the experience to answer questions you have in this complicated area.
- We can resolve minor and serious tax problems- IRS 1040's, state, local, 941's or employee withholding. No matter what your history with taxes we can help you come up with a plan to resolve past problems. There is hope even if you haven't filed tax returns for multiple years. We have filed tens of thousands of cases now for over thirty years. There is probably not any tax problem you have that we haven't faced before many times.
- Let me share just one example of what can be done. Assume a person owed taxes for the last five years and timely filed the taxes. We can file a chapter 13 stop a tax levy and wipe out the taxes that are over three years old. Through chapter 13 the last three years taxes can be paid over as long as five years. Penalties are eliminated and interest is frozen and the person can pay the taxes in monthly payments they can afford. This includes state and local taxes! A person can keep their home, business and other assets.
- This area is complicated. We advise you to talk to us about your options. Making a decision based solely on self education could be a big mistake. Dates are critical. Normally we will need a tax transcript showing exact taxes and dates of assessment. The IRS does not enforce all provisions of the law. Therefore it is important that the attorney assisting you in this area be very familiar with the law and IRS policies. We obviously cannot go into details here. However we are happy to consult with you personally in confidence regarding your particular problem and exactly what can be done.
- The proof of what we can do is evidenced in how our fee is charged and paid. When we file a chapter 13 it is normally for a nominal amount of the attorney fee up front. The vast majority of our fee is paid through a chapter 13 plan after your case has been confirmed by a judge which binds the IRS or state. We are paid months and sometimes years after your plan has been confirmed. In other words we don't get paid unless we deliver on what we promise. Other so called experts require all their fee up front. What does that tell you? If they can't or don't deliver they have already been paid. What incentive is there for them to accomplish the result you need? We get paid after we accomplish a resolution of your tax problem. That should be proof enough.