Assignment Task: Adam and Eve Garden walk into your office seeking legal help with their finances. The following are the facts that were garnered at the initial consultation:
The clients are married and own their home. They both work outside the home and are employees (not independent contractors). They have a mortgage on the house and are current with the payments. They have some medical bills and a substantial amount of non-medical unsecured debt (credit cards). All the cards are joint. They file joint tax returns and have jointly held bank accounts. Each has a 401k from their place of employment, and each account is worth a few hundred thousand dollars. Each has a car and a loan in his/her respective name. They have two minor children who live with them (ages 9 and 11). They have sought advice because they cannot keep up with the credit card payments any longer. As more time goes by, they may be unable to keep all the cards current and pay the mortgage and utilities. It was determined, pending full receipt and review of the documentation requested in this letter, that a Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing is the appropriate option for them. Contact the client and give them a list of the financial items to bring to the next meeting.
Compose a professional legal letter to the clients.
In this letter, you will request documents that are necessary to create the bankruptcy petition and schedules:
o Means Test
o Statement of Financial Affairs.
o Creditor's Schedules.
o Property Schedules