How are Trustees chosen?

[Lajazz947]

Two part question:

1-I have heard everything from great to horror stories for Trustees.

I live in Southern California. How are TT's selected?

2-I think that I read in another thread that preferential payments were worked into a repayment plan with the creditors instead of going after the insider.

How rare is this? I want to avoid going after the insider that I paid money to at all costs.

Any suggestions?

[yoyoma51]

Local trustees are hired...by the federal government. They are mostly private-practice attorneys (although being an attorney IS NOT a requirement). They apply and get hired like anyone else. No great mystery as some believe.

They are compensated and also paid a percentage of everything they 'take back' (preferential payments, seizures of assets, etc).

Our lawyer has been a trustee since 1982. It is a pretty good gig, actually.

In our Ch. 7, our lawyer told us not to worry about our preferential payments (meaning we didn't have to wait to file) as the trustee is MORE THAN HAPPY to go back to the creditors and get the money back....more money for the trustee's pocket! None of our creditors were insiders, however.

It really made no difference to us what-so-ever.