Whether you are a bankruptcy attorney or a bankruptcy paralegal, you may find today’s blog useful in your client signing meetings. This a script I use when reviewing the Voluntary Petition with clients. If they prefer to review their pleadings without me present, I send them this text with their pleadings. 

Should Paralegals Facilitate Signing Meetings?

I have come across two attorneys who questioned whether a task as important as reviewing and signing the final pleadings should be done by a paralegal. And to be quite honest, since entering this field I never felt like it was appropriate. However, when I started working at the Omaha office of Legal Aid of Nebraska, it was part of the paralegal’s duties to lead the conversation during the signings.

I sat down with the paralegal who formerly held the position. She had been promoted to the administration level of the firm (congrats to her), where she happily remains to this day. So she was available to walk me through the process and remind me that everything we say in these meetings could be said at any meeting with any client. 

The Paralegal Fear Of Being Misunderstood

This calmed my fears of being misunderstood as somehow giving legal advice. Once I looked at it that way, meeting with client’s to sign their final pleadings felt much more like providing notarial services. Which is always just confirming the information is accurate.

Prior to developing an attorney-approved script for signing meetings, I felt that naturally uncomfortable feeling that so many paralegals feel. You know the one that comes along with knowing you know the client’s case like the back of your hand, knowing the client knows you know it so well, and the client asks a question, and the attorney is not present. 

Depending on where you are in your career and the level of fear that has been instilled in you, said question could be as simple as, “It sure is hot out there, isn’t it?”

Ok, I am being dramatic here. But I am here to look out for you. And I do actually work as a paralegal, a very active paralegal. And I do think that one of the most important things a paralegal does is keep the client well-informed without giving any legal advice. So, it’s kind of a big deal.

The Art of Paralegalling

This is the art of our field comrades. We know we cannot give legal advice. So with proper planning and communication with your attorney, you can guide your client to the answers and help facilitate keeping them well-informed regarding their case. 

Paralegal Power’s Bankruptcy Pleadings Sign & Review Script is the product of such planning and available for free to all of you. This tool will help keep your client pleading signing meetings running smooth. 

The following is a script of what I tell clients as we review solely the Voluntary Petition portion of their bankruptcy pleadings. Stay tuned to this blog for the entire script for all pleadings, or click here to subscribe to the blog now and I will gift you the entire script instantly via a Google Doc. Allowing you to copy, edit and save as appropriate for your practice.

As you will see it is written as a literal script. The places were you will need to adjust the language for each client, is bolded. Text in parenthesis are notes for the reader and not intended to be spoken.

VOLUNTARY PETITION

This pleading is your Voluntary Petition. This is the first required pleading to be filed. In this pleading you will find:

Your name as it appears on your identification.

Any aliases you have used in the past eight years. As you will notice, in order to make these pleadings as complete as possible, we had to list every variation of your name as an alias.

The last four digits of your social security number.

That you have/have not owned any businesses in the past 8 years.

Your current address.

Confirming/Denying that you have lived in your current county for the greater part of the past six months.

That you have elected to file a Chapter 7/11/12/13 Bankruptcy. 

That you are paying the filing fee with the petition/requesting to be able to pay the filing fee in installments. 

That you have/have not filed bankruptcy in the past 8 years. 

That there are no/these are the current pending bankruptcies for you to reference that you are affiliated with. 

That you do/do not rent your residence. (If there is a pending eviction, it will be noted here and you will reference that.)

That you are/are not currently running a business. 

That you are/are not filing for a Chapter 11 Bankruptcy. 

That you do/do not have anything that poses a threat to public health or safety. 

That you completed the required pre-bankruptcy credit counseling course within the past six months. (In the rare instance, the Debtor qualifies for a waiver of this requirement, you are typically reviewing the pleadings with the Debtor’s guardian. Nonetheless, that should be noted that a waiver will be required and requested, subject to the court’s approval.)

That your debts are/are not primarily consumer and are/are not primarily business-related.

That you have less than [x amount of] creditors. 

Your assets are worth between [x amount] and [x amount]. This includes your home, vehicles, 401(k) and life insurance policy. (I always just throw whatever high valued assets the client has here. They are often shocked to see the value of their assets as high as it is and are afraid of making errors, so it is typically helpful to briefly remind them of their large assets.)

Your liabilities are between [x amount] and [x amount]. This includes all of your liabilities.

On the signature page here you are affirming:

• That you examined this petition.
• You declare under penalty of perjury that the information provided is true and correct. 
• You chose to file a Chapter 7/11/12/13.
• You are aware that you may proceed, if eligible, under Chapter 7, 11,12, or 13 of title 11, United States Code. 
• You understand the relief available under each chapter.
• You choose to proceed under Chapter 7/11/12/13.
• The “no attorney statements” does not apply to you because you have an attorney.
• You have obtained and read the notice required by 11 U.S.C. § 342(b). This is the notice your attorney reviewed with you at your initial consultation. This is also the form sent you with the first draft of your pleadings and by itself about a week ago.
• You request relief in accordance with the bankruptcy laws.
• You understand making a false statement, concealing property, or obtaining money or property by fraud in connection with a bankruptcy case can result in fines up to $250,000, or imprisonment for up to 20 years, or both.