difference between discharge and closing?

[jenopher]

What is the difference? What could happen between discharge and closing? I thought discharge meant everything closed.

[BassBoy]

There is a thread/post floating around here answering/explaining the difference, but I can't locate it. Anyways, discharged means your debts are gone and closing is when your case is over. The timeframe between discharge and closing is mostly administrative work and really has no affect on you.

With no asset cases, closing usually comes shortly after discharge. With asset cases, closing can take up to a year or longer because of the distribution of money to your creditors. This can take some time before all of your creditors have received money, cashed the checks and then the Trustee balances the checkbook (in a sense). When all of this is completed, the Trustee can finalize his/her records, resign and then the case will be closed.