Jul 10
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social security office las vegas nevada
The Bankruptcy Code requires every debtor to appear and submit to a bankruptcy examination under oath at a meeting with the debtor's creditors. This meeting is presided over by the bankruptcy trustee and is an opportunity for creditors and the trustee to determine if assets have improperly been disposed of or concealed or if there are grounds for objection to discharge. At this meeting the trustee must inform the Chapter 7 debtor of the consequences of bankruptcy, the availability of relief under other chapters of the Bankruptcy Code, and the effect of receiving a discharge of debts and of reaffirming a debt.
The Meeting of Creditors (also called the "Trustee's Meeting," the "Creditors’ Meeting," or the 341 Meeting (after section 341 of the bankruptcy code which requires the meeting) is held between 20 and 40 days after your bankruptcy is filed. The bankruptcy court schedules the meeting and mails notices to all of your creditors. However, the bankruptcy judge is prohibited from attending the meeting. Since there is no judge, the Meeting of Creditors is not a judicial proceeding.
The bankruptcy trustee is required examine you under oath and investigate your financial affairs. The trustee then submits a report to the bankruptcy court and Office of the U.S. Trustee. The trustee is also required to ask specific questions, including:
Did you read your schedules before signing them?
Did you list all of your assets?
Did you list all of your debts?
Are your schedules accurate or do you need to make any corrections?
Do you have a domestic support obligation?
The trustee may also have specific questions concerning your schedules which may involve your assets, income, expenses, debts, or financial transactions. Your attorney will be present with you to assist you during this examination. The trustee may also require that you provide information or documents before, during or after the meeting including bank statements, pay stubs, tax returns, vehicle titles, and land ownership and debt documents. Finally, you are required to provide proof of identity including social security number and a government issued photo I.D.
Despite the name, the Meeting of Creditors is generally a meeting that no creditors attend. For most national creditors like Ford Motor Credit or Capital One it is not cost-effective to attend these meetings. Because the trustee conducts dozens of these meetings on the same day, any creditor questions are limited to only a few minutes. If the creditor needs additional time, it can ask the bankruptcy court to order the debtor to appear for a further examination between just the creditor and the debtor at a later date.
Many bankruptcy debtors are very nervous going into the Meeting of Creditors, but soon realize that it is just a procedural formality. The experienced bankruptcy attorneys at Haines and Krieger will assist you during your meeting, and can answer any questions concerning your Nevada Meeting of Creditors or the bankruptcy process. Contact us today for a free consultation.
SUBMITTED RELEASE
During the Nevada Democratic Party Convention that was held over weekend, Sen. Harry Reid called the idea of Social Security insolvency a “myth” while claiming that the fund should remain solvent for at least another 40 years. Reid went on to say that this “myth” was perpetuated in order to scare senior citizens, as noted by reporter Jon Ralston.
This isn’t the first time that Reid has made out-of-touch statements about the solvency of Social Security. Reid said in 2005 that he believed the “Social Security crisis exists in only one place: the minds of Republicans.” And in 1999, Reid claimed that Social Security is not in trouble and stated “and until the year 2032, people are going to draw 100 percent of the benefits.” Contrary to Reid’s claims, the New York Times reported that “This year, the system will pay out more in benefits than it receives in payroll taxes, an important threshold it was not expected to cross until at least 2016, according to the Congressional Budget Office.”
Republican Senate candidate Sharron Angle said of Reid’s statements: “When Harry Reid calls this problem a ‘myth,’ he’s either being dishonest, or he just doesn’t get it. Social Security is teetering on the brink of insolvency, and voters in this state deserve more than an out-of-touch politician who has spent nearly three decades in Washington who won’t be straight with them. It is time to cut spending and protect taxpayers’ hard-earned dollars, and as Senator, that is exactly what I will work to do.”
Background information
In The Past, Reid Has Argued That There Is No Social Security Crisis:
In 2005, Reid Believed The “Social Security Crisis Exists In Only One Place: The Minds Of Republicans,” Despite A Report Showing That Social Security Will Begin Paying Out More In Benefits Than It Receives In Payroll Taxes In 2017. “A new report on the financial health of Social Security changed the numbers only slightly and the terms of the political debate even less so. The trustees who oversee the government retirement program said Wednesday that Social Security will begin paying out more in benefits than it receives in payroll taxes in 2017. That means the government at that point will have to increase its borrowing on financial markets, raise taxes or divert money from other government programs to sustain Social Security at current levels. . . . Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid of Nevada said the report ‘confirms that the so-called Social Security crisis exists in only one place: the minds of Republicans.’” (Glen Johnson, “Social Security Report Changes Numbers Slightly, But Not The Political Debate,” The Associated Press, 3/24/05)
In 2005, Reid Said “There Is No Emergency On Social Security.” “But not today. Although the dismal projections of the system’s inevitable fiscal shortfalls have changed little since 1998 and Congress has taken no action to shore up the system, Reid now says, ‘There is no emergency on Social Security,’ and his ‘just say it ain’t so’ strategy has been adopted by most Capitol Hill Democrats.” (David Winston, Op-Ed, “Viewers Back Bush, Not ‘Irresponsible’ Democratic Policy,” Roll Call, 2/8/05)
In 2005, Reid Said “There’s No Crisis In Social Security.” “‘We want to make sure that the American people understand that we’re not for benefit cuts and we’re not for privatization,’ Reid said. ‘There’s no crisis in Social Security.’” (Alex Wayne, “Reid Says No Senate Democrat Will Back Bush’s Social Security Plan,” Congressional Quarterly Today, 2/1/05)
In 2005, Reid Argued “We Have No Crisis . . . For The Next 50 Years, People On Social Security, If We Do Nothing, Will Draw 100 Percent Of Their Benefits.” “Wearing blue jeans and a blue work shirt, Reid also charged the president is creating a crisis to reform Social Security. ‘We have no crisis,’ Reid said. ‘For the next 50 years, people on Social Security, if we do nothing, will draw 100 percent of their benefits.’” (Tony Batt, “Reid Backs Off His Criticism Of Thomas,” Las Vegas Review Journal, 1/17/05)
In 1999, Reid Claimed That Social Security Is Not In Trouble And “And Until The Year 2032, People Are Going To Draw 100 Percent Of The Benefits.” SENATOR REID: “Tony, but Social Security isn’t in trouble. We’re — if we do nothing, which we certainly have to do something . . .” FOX NEWS’ TONY SNOW: “So why are we talking about something that’s not two- thirds of the surplus?” SENATOR REID: “And until the year 2032, people are going to draw 100 percent of the benefits. What we’re trying to do is to make sure that after the year 2032, that people can still draw 100 percent of the benefits. That’s something that we need to do.” (“Fox News Sunday,” 2/14/99)
In March 2010, It Was Reported That Social Security Will Pay Out More Than It Takes In During 2010:
“The Bursting Of The Real Estate Bubble And The Ensuing Recession Have Hurt Jobs, Home Prices And Now Social Security. This Year, The System Will Pay Out More In Benefits Than It Receives In Payroll Taxes, An Important Threshold It Was Not Expected To Cross Until At Least 2016, According To The Congressional Budget Office.” (Mary Williams Walsh, “Social Security To See Payout Exceed Pay In,” The New York Times, 3/25/10)
Analysts View This As A Tipping Point, And “The First Step Of A Long, Slow March To Insolvency . . .” “Analysts have long tried to predict the year when Social Security would pay out more than it took in because they view it as a tipping point–the first step of a long, slow march to insolvency, unless Congress strengthens the program’s finances. ‘When the level of the trust fund gets to zero, you have to cut benefits,’ Alan Greenspan, architect of the plan to rescue the Social Security program the last time it got into trouble, in the early 1980s, said on Wednesday.” (Mary Williams Walsh, “Social Security To See Payout Exceed Pay In,” The New York Times, 3/25/10)
