Okay, my chapter 7 was filed with the court yesterday (10-13). I am pro se. Did the best I could to put it all together.
You know that one exception to discharging 'judgments' wherein if the debtor intentionally or maliciously caused injury to another, that judgment/debt is NOT dischargeable?
The biggest problem I see coming up in terms of the 341 meeting will be objections (and grief!) from one of my creditors: my BROTHER! (though I use the term loosely!).
He is this really rich guy (worth 10s of millions). He used me in 2003 for defamation. Had a whole team of lawyers. I tried to settle his 'grief' with him on a personal level, but he was having none of that. He wanted to play 'court guy' so I walked away and told him to fight with himself.
So he takes a judgment against me a year ago. For about $30,000. (I am sure he must still be in counseling from the emotional distress since I must have really hurt his feelings...)
Anyways, this brother is also listed in my bankruptcy as trustee of a contingent future interest for me in a family trust for considerable money. A relative has to die, and then the brother has to give me a chunk of change. That money is/was invested in the stock market since 1998, and that brother/trustee has refused to give ANY reports on the assets: how much, what they were invested in, how much principle is left, etc. Just REFUSES to give any information. Always has. Of course, this is against his fiduciary duty as a trustee, but it would take me getting an attorney and spending $50K to FORCE him to open up the books. Him being rich and me being a simple wage earner, he knew I could never do that.
I believe his goal all along was to find a way to NOT pay me that trust money. Heck, I was waiting for maybe getting it and paying ALL my creditors. Not waiting, just kind of hoping.
This brother was also executor of our parent's will. He didn't give me 2 acres of land that were supposed to go to me. He, of course, knew that it would take me getting a lawyer I could never afford and $50K to FORCE him to perform his fiduciary duties (and moral duties as well).
That's my brother. Just a real prize. I think he thinks our father didn't love him all that much and loved me a ton... a lifetime wound that I am not responsible for.
Anyways.... he will no doubt send a team of lawyers (since he loves playing 'court guy' especially when he can sue women. I am the 3rd woman in as many years that he has sued).
So, I know I should probably talk to an attorney about how to handle this judgment against me, especially in how I discuss it with the trustee. But I thought I would throw out some questions here in the event that someone has some experience with this.
1. I am thinking about writing to the trustee right away and explaining that there could be assets available to pay all creditors. That relative could have died and I don't know about it. And ask the trustee to inquire into it. I can't force my brother to do anything or answer any questions or even to do what the trust tells him to do. But a bankrupty trustee sure could, it seems. Heck, I don't care if ALL the trust money pays my debts. I would prefer it, actually. (What irony: pay all the debts AND still have a BK on my record. Living the fine life, I tell you!)
2. Concerning the judgment, it dawned on me after I filed that *maybe* I was acknowledging the judgment by my brother as VALID by listing it and *not* saying I disputed it. In which case, I would amend, because I do dispute the judgment in its entirety... not that my opinion counts over a state court judgment decision, but still.
3. Does anyone think that the trustee will actually LOOK at what the case was about in terms of deciding if it was a 'malicious or intentional injury' and therefore not dischargeable? I would assume 'defamation' is on its face 'intentional'. But anyone looking at the bogus bull that my brother sued me over (I said something unfriendly on a message board he owned....that no one had posted to in MONTHS... and my 'statement' was up from 3am to 6am until he deleted it. Yep, that's my $30K crime! That's my family... a real lovely crowd. Wonder if the trustee will grill my brother about the bogus vindictiveness of his 'judgment', as in: he had the time and the money to be a jerk, so he won a judgment!
4. My filing bankruptcy will be a GLORIOUS moment for my multi-millionaire brother. It will be like christmas early for him! And he will try to really foul things up for me at the 341. I wonder if he could delay my discharge until the cows come home? Like until waiting for that relative to die (who may already be dead now for all I know).
I don't know... I am just thinking 'out loud' here on how to handle this whole trust, judgment, bk trustee thing. Need to play it as smart as I can (in light of the fact that I can't afford an attorney, which my case would surely call for, I realize).
Do I turn the trustee loose on my brother EARLY (as soon as I know the trustee's name), or just wait to see what happens at the 341 and who shows up.
As far as I am concerned... if the trust money is available now... I would just assume pay ALL my creditors like a good little consumer debtor. And if it means that my brother takes $30K off the top for his bogus judgment against me, so be it. It will be HIS karma that will take care of him. I mean... extorting money from someone (a sister at that)... karmically could cost him ten-fold, so that's 30 million that the universe would hit him up for. I could live with that.
So, folks, there are worse things than bankruptcy and debt. There's evil family members who really can try to make your life hell.
Any comments would be appreciated.
Good luck to everyone. Well, if nothing, at least I made christmas FUN for my evil arse brother. It's Christmas for me too: cause I ain't HIM. grrrr.
You know that one exception to discharging 'judgments' wherein if the debtor intentionally or maliciously caused injury to another, that judgment/debt is NOT dischargeable?
The biggest problem I see coming up in terms of the 341 meeting will be objections (and grief!) from one of my creditors: my BROTHER! (though I use the term loosely!).
He is this really rich guy (worth 10s of millions). He used me in 2003 for defamation. Had a whole team of lawyers. I tried to settle his 'grief' with him on a personal level, but he was having none of that. He wanted to play 'court guy' so I walked away and told him to fight with himself.
So he takes a judgment against me a year ago. For about $30,000. (I am sure he must still be in counseling from the emotional distress since I must have really hurt his feelings...)
Anyways, this brother is also listed in my bankruptcy as trustee of a contingent future interest for me in a family trust for considerable money. A relative has to die, and then the brother has to give me a chunk of change. That money is/was invested in the stock market since 1998, and that brother/trustee has refused to give ANY reports on the assets: how much, what they were invested in, how much principle is left, etc. Just REFUSES to give any information. Always has. Of course, this is against his fiduciary duty as a trustee, but it would take me getting an attorney and spending $50K to FORCE him to open up the books. Him being rich and me being a simple wage earner, he knew I could never do that.
I believe his goal all along was to find a way to NOT pay me that trust money. Heck, I was waiting for maybe getting it and paying ALL my creditors. Not waiting, just kind of hoping.
This brother was also executor of our parent's will. He didn't give me 2 acres of land that were supposed to go to me. He, of course, knew that it would take me getting a lawyer I could never afford and $50K to FORCE him to perform his fiduciary duties (and moral duties as well).
That's my brother. Just a real prize. I think he thinks our father didn't love him all that much and loved me a ton... a lifetime wound that I am not responsible for.
Anyways.... he will no doubt send a team of lawyers (since he loves playing 'court guy' especially when he can sue women. I am the 3rd woman in as many years that he has sued).
So, I know I should probably talk to an attorney about how to handle this judgment against me, especially in how I discuss it with the trustee. But I thought I would throw out some questions here in the event that someone has some experience with this.
1. I am thinking about writing to the trustee right away and explaining that there could be assets available to pay all creditors. That relative could have died and I don't know about it. And ask the trustee to inquire into it. I can't force my brother to do anything or answer any questions or even to do what the trust tells him to do. But a bankrupty trustee sure could, it seems. Heck, I don't care if ALL the trust money pays my debts. I would prefer it, actually. (What irony: pay all the debts AND still have a BK on my record. Living the fine life, I tell you!)
2. Concerning the judgment, it dawned on me after I filed that *maybe* I was acknowledging the judgment by my brother as VALID by listing it and *not* saying I disputed it. In which case, I would amend, because I do dispute the judgment in its entirety... not that my opinion counts over a state court judgment decision, but still.
3. Does anyone think that the trustee will actually LOOK at what the case was about in terms of deciding if it was a 'malicious or intentional injury' and therefore not dischargeable? I would assume 'defamation' is on its face 'intentional'. But anyone looking at the bogus bull that my brother sued me over (I said something unfriendly on a message board he owned....that no one had posted to in MONTHS... and my 'statement' was up from 3am to 6am until he deleted it. Yep, that's my $30K crime! That's my family... a real lovely crowd. Wonder if the trustee will grill my brother about the bogus vindictiveness of his 'judgment', as in: he had the time and the money to be a jerk, so he won a judgment!
4. My filing bankruptcy will be a GLORIOUS moment for my multi-millionaire brother. It will be like christmas early for him! And he will try to really foul things up for me at the 341. I wonder if he could delay my discharge until the cows come home? Like until waiting for that relative to die (who may already be dead now for all I know).
I don't know... I am just thinking 'out loud' here on how to handle this whole trust, judgment, bk trustee thing. Need to play it as smart as I can (in light of the fact that I can't afford an attorney, which my case would surely call for, I realize).
Do I turn the trustee loose on my brother EARLY (as soon as I know the trustee's name), or just wait to see what happens at the 341 and who shows up.
As far as I am concerned... if the trust money is available now... I would just assume pay ALL my creditors like a good little consumer debtor. And if it means that my brother takes $30K off the top for his bogus judgment against me, so be it. It will be HIS karma that will take care of him. I mean... extorting money from someone (a sister at that)... karmically could cost him ten-fold, so that's 30 million that the universe would hit him up for. I could live with that.
So, folks, there are worse things than bankruptcy and debt. There's evil family members who really can try to make your life hell.
Any comments would be appreciated.
Good luck to everyone. Well, if nothing, at least I made christmas FUN for my evil arse brother. It's Christmas for me too: cause I ain't HIM. grrrr.
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