Debtor�s counsel face new duties and potential liabilities in a number of areas

[bkfiler]

[bkfiler]

most attorneys i talk to still are saying all they are going to do is make the debtor sign papers stating that the information they gave was true and factual.

i cant wait to read some cases regarding civil fines on attorneys under Rule 9011.

[FoolAndHisMoney]

most attorneys i talk to still are saying all they are going to do is make the debtor sign papers stating that the information they gave was true and factual.

i cant wait to read some cases regarding civil fines on attorneys under Rule 9011.

If that is true then those lawyers have no business raising their costs since they're not doing anymore work.
I actually feel better if a lawyer investigated me. I'd rather the lawyer raise an issue then the court raise an issue.

[bkfiler]

but the court never investigated this stuff either.

what is the attorney going to do? i mean it. come see if you really live at that address?

call the bank to check funds? cuz maybe you falsified your bank statement copy?

none of this got checked before, unless a random DOJ/FBI review was done-which wasnt often at all.

i think its more of a 'you better make sure your client DOES fit the chapter you are filing and all paperwork is ready and looked at and we dont have to teach you the means test calculations'

how do you see it?

[SinkingFast]

One of the attnys told us the New Law requires random audits. But the attny said the chance was extremely small. Something like 0.5% that any one case in particular would be pulled. Odds were in our favor that our case wouldn't be audited is what the attny said.

One attny said something that made me think the Trustee could get a wild hair up their butt and decide they wanted to come to our house. I'm thinking "My gosh! I'd have to keep the house clean just in case." So I said, "The Trustee will really come to our house?" Attny said not likely, but if the Trustee wants, they can send an investigator to look around. Which they do once a while. Somebody has to pay the investigator, maybe the Trustee outa their proceeds?? So I guess it doesn't have very often.

[bkfiler]

One of the attnys told us the New Law requires random audits.

correct. "Establishes random audits for at least every 1 out of 250 individual filings, as directed by the Attorney General."

i posted about that awhile back. i thought it was FBI, but recently start stating is as DOJ since us trustee is picked by att general, etc.

but i found the item again and it state FBI.

1 out of every 250 is a lot imo. several people here will be audited. we will see how it goes.

http://www.bestcase.com/grafix/pdf/bkreform.pdf

[FoolAndHisMoney]

The audits will go into effect 1 year after new law (oct 2006). 1 in 250 is a lot! Everything I read on the subject says the same thing, "it remains to be seen just how the audit process will work". They may just be double checking paperwork, they may stop over your house and do the white glove test, no one knows. The only thing I did notice is they said that pro se filers are more likely going to have cars and homes appraised by bankruptcy administrators.

With 1 in 250 I will take a guess and say that they will probably just double check paperwork, maybe check the banks & DMV. When you do the math that's about 4000 audits for every million. If 2005 filers were audited then that's 8000. I can't imagine that they have the resources for this. Then again who knows?

[SinkingFast]

The audits start in October of this year???

I hope you're right about the review of paperwork thing. For the most part, it will prolly be I's dotted and T's crossed kind of thing. Otherwise they'd have to hire a whole bunch of people. That would make sense to limit the full process to select filers with extraordinary issues.

[bkfiler]

id look for filers with no issues myself. see what they are hiding.