will the trustee take all my tax refund

[babygirlkeke]

Me and my husband filed for bankruptcy in December of 09...We dont file together so we get about 13,000 dollars back together...will the trustee take all of it? I heard we can right a hardship letter to ask to keep it...Is that true....I live in Missouri and newd work done to my home and car

[lrprn]

Me and my husband filed for bankruptcy in December of 09...We dont file together so we get about 13,000 dollars back together...will the trustee take all of it?

It depends on your trustee's customary practices around tax refunds. It's certain that Missouri's bk exemptions cannot protect all of $13K, that's for sure. And if this has been your pattern of tax refunds for the last several years, your trustee is very likely going to be salivating to get his/her hands on whatever tax money you can't protect.

To be frank, it's crazy to allow the federal and state governments to have $13,000 of your money tax-free for a year. Uncle Sam makes a terrible savings account. Starting now at the start of the new year, take a hard look at your withholdings to start getting more of your money back in your own pockets immediately. Even a crappy low-interest savings account makes more sense than what you are doing now.

I heard we can right a hardship letter to ask to keep it...Is that true....I live in Missouri and newd work done to my home and car

You can ask the court to allow you to keep your tax refund if you truly are in hardship. Typically that means proving you are indeed, insolvent. There's no guarantee that the court will agree you can have all of $13,000 back.

If you plan to file with a lawyer, then these are great questions to ask during your free initial consultations with 3-4 experienced bk lawyers in your area.

[babygirlkeke]

ThanKs for the info....my 341 meeting is in 20 days can I file my taxes before the meeting are is it better to wait

[lrprn]

ThanKs for the info....my 341 meeting is in 20 days can I file my taxes before the meeting are is it better to wait

Unfortunately now that you've already filed, there's really no out for you

The problem with filing your taxes knowing you are going to get a huge refund any time after you've filed bankruptcy is that your trustee will likely see the large tax refunds pattern, make your Ch 7 an asset case, wait for the tax refund to show up whenever it does, and then take whatever $$ can't be protected by your state's bk exemptions.

Of course, maybe you'll be extremely lucky and have one of the few trustees that don't care about tax refunds.

Did you file your bk pro se (without a lawyer)?

[babygirlkeke]

No what is a pro see.....and I really need that money to fix things around the house and fix my older car......Can I just withdraw my bankruptcy case and file a later time....I might not show for the 341 meeting

[kvangild]

No what is a pro see.....and I really need that money to fix things around the house and fix my older car......Can I just withdraw my bankruptcy case and file a later time....I might not show for the 341 meeting

Pro Se means that you represent yourself without a lawyer.

[babygirlkeke]

I really need my money to fix house repairs and fix my car.......can I withdraw my bankruptcy and file a later time?

[kvangild]

I really need my money to fix house repairs and fix my car.......can I withdraw my bankruptcy and file a later time?

It's my understanding that you can't "withdraw" a bankruptcy case once it's filed.

[babygirlkeke]

Ok....yes I do have a lawyer

[lrprn]

Ok....yes I do have a lawyer

Well then, did you tell your lawyer before he/she filed your case about this $13K tax refund that's coming? If your lawyer knew about the size of this refund, then it's hard to believe that this didn't come up as a potential problem before your case was filed.

As I said before, unless your trustee is one of the very few trustees that doesn't care about tax refunds, then this is likely to become a BIG problem for you. You could lose most of this refund, or have to make a deal with the trustee to pay him/her whatever you take of the refund that can't be protected by your state exemptions.

You need to ask your lawyer about what's going to happen with the $13K tax refund now that you've already filed. He/she will know what your trustee usually does with tax refunds of this size that can't be protected.

And more bad news....since you filed Ch 7, you cannot voluntarily dismiss your own case now that it's been filed. Only your trustee can ask the court to dismiss your case.

[babygirlkeke]

sad face...I'm not going to the 341 meetingand then I'm going to give my lawyer a piece of mind....they should have told me to wait

[jribe]

I really need my money to fix house repairs and fix my car.......can I withdraw my bankruptcy and file a later time?

you can petition the court to have your case dismissed; but it's up to the judge if they do it or not. If he/she feels it's better for you to file- they will deny the order.

[lrprn]

sad face...I'm not going to the 341 meeting...

Well, this is no time to go off the deep end by just not showing up to your 341. That could end up not only getting your case being eventually dismissed by the trustee but a request made by your trustee to make all the debts non-dischargeable *forever* to boot. Please step back and think before reacting about the long-term consequences of whatever you do.

and then I'm going to give my lawyer a piece of mind....they should have told me to wait

Yes, given the information you've shared so far, your situation could be better if you had filed your 2009 taxes, gotten the huge refund, spent it down to whatever is protected by your state exemptions, and *then* filed bankruptcy. But that isn't what happened. You can't turn back the clock - you can only move forward to deal with what is.

It's possible that the reason your lawyers didn't mention this as a problem is (1) they didn't know you were getting such a huge refund because you neglected to tell them; (2) your trustee is one that doesn't care about refunds no matter how large they may be; or (3) your lawyer really dropped the ball here. Which is it?

Only you know if it's #1 and only your lawyers know if it's #2 or #3. No matter which reason it is, you need to ask your lawyers what can be done with this situation, then weigh all your options in a realistic way once you know them.

[babygirlkeke]

Thanks so much for the advice and your right I can't turn back now...my attorney knew we always got a good refund....I think they just wanted some money....I will go to the meeting and file and keep my taxes until I find out what the trustee will do and just write a letter and let them know. I need my money. ..

[LimpDisc]

Thanks so much for the advice and your right I can't turn back now...my attorney knew we always got a good refund....I think they just wanted some money....I will go to the meeting and file and keep my taxes until I find out what the trustee will do and just write a letter and let them know. I need my money. ..

Depending on where you are located, you might have it backwards. The trustee might keep you taxes until he\she decides what to do with it.

"I need my money"

Dont take this the wrong way, but the CC's also want their money. It's the trustees job to go after that refund. You should prepare yourself to lose a large portion of it.