Need help re: Motion to Redact

[vgnewsom]

Hi everyone! I'm new here and I filed my chapter 7 on my own before I knew about this site. Everything seemed to be going well, but I mistakenly entered my SSN on my schedule F because it was the account number for my student loan. The court (Illinois - Northern District) sent me a notice that I had to file a motion to redact, and they sent me a sample form that was the order to redact. I assumed that that was also considered the motion as well as the order, as their letter said to fill out that form and return it with the redacted schedule F. So today I get a notice of deficient filing because I didn't include the motion. I have no idea what the motion should even look like. I haven't been able to find any examples specifically for a motion to redact. I have found motions for other things but I don't want to just wing it and end up with another notice of deficient filing. Can anyone give me some advice in what the motion should look like and what it would say?

And please, don't tell me I should get a lawyer. If I could afford it, I would have done that. As it is, I have only $80 to my name, I don't have a job, and I have over $300k in medical bills, so I really don't want to hear that I should get a lawyer.

Thanks for any help that anyone can give me!

[LadyInTheRed]

I found this in a quick google search. It should help: http://www.ilnb.uscourts.gov/forms/L..._Redact_bk.pdf

[vgnewsom]

Thanks. That's the order to redact and I already sent that. Apparently I have to also send a motion to redact. I haven't been able to find an example of a motion to redact, and the ilnb website doesn't have an example either. I really hate this. I am afraid they are going to dismiss my bankrupty because I made one stupid little mistake. They approved my fee waiver and if this gets dismissed and they won't approve the fee waiver again I'm screwed. I've called and they won't tell me anyything about the motion over the phone and I can't get downtown to talk to the help desk people. I really feel like I'm never gonna get this right. All I can do is let them dismiss this and then file again, but I can't afford to file again. I've literally been crying all day about this because I can't find anything at all regarding motions to redact online.

[AngelinaCat]

Hi vgnewsom, welcome to the forum.

Here is a sample motion from Louisiana:

http://www.laeb.uscourts.gov/Forms/pdf/MotionToRedact.pdf

Take the language of the motion that you see in this form, and put it into a copy of the Illinois form, making adjustments in the wording where necessary, and that should do it.

And it is routine for an attorney to file both a Motion and the Order with the court at the same time, so that all the judge has to do is sign it. Now in the language: "Now into court, through undersigned counsel, comes <name of creditor or party>,(“Mover”)", take out the red highlighted part, and where the blue highlighted part is, put your name and add 'pro se' to the end of your name. Such as: "John Doe, pro se"

Good luck!

[vgnewsom]

AngelinaCat -

Thank You! I have been so worried about this, and kicking myself for thinking this was easier to do than I thought it would be and now one little mistake and one form would completely blow this for me. I've been lurking here for a couple of weeks, and I had a feeling I would get some help here, but I also worried that I'm the only one who ever made this mistake! Thanks again, and thanks to LadyInTheRed for the help too. I'm hoping after I've been here for a while I can be as helpful.

[AngelinaCat]

You are most welcome!

You have no idea the number of stupid mistakes that we made--and we had an attorney. She just didn't educate us in the process sufficiently. We didn't find this forum until well after all our mistakes were made.

Thank you for offering to help when your case is finished.

[LadyInTheRed]

Ooops, I posted the wrong link. It was supposed to be the same one AC posted. Thanks, AC!

[justbroke]

I can't believe I missed this thread. I had to do something similar when a creditor sent my SSN in clear text! I filed a Motion to Redact and had to submit the Order AND the actual redacted document.

[vgnewsom]

I just wanted to thank everyone here again for the help! I filed the motion with the order and redacted document right after AngelinaCat gave me that example. The funny thing is that the day after I sent the correct motion I checked PACER. Even though I got a letter of deficient filing from one clerk, a different clerk entered that I sent a motion to redact anyway, and sure enough when I checked the docket there was a motion to redact in there that I assume the same clerk filled out. I guess I just got some really nice clerk who decided to fill it out for me, but I have to say I am very surprised by that. Has anyone ever seen that happen before? It just seems really unusual to me that someone at the court would do something that nice to help out someone who made a mistake. I wish I had known that sooner, so I wouldn't have had to spend like $12 or so making copies and mailing out motions, but given that my entire cost for the bankruptcy was less than $70 (I got a fee waiver and only paid $9.95 for each of the counseling courses) I certainly can't complain. I had the 341 today and it seemed to go well so now I've just got the 60 day wait! Thanks again everyone for the help.

[df04527]

Congrats!