appointment booked ... worried

ninokas

Hi all...
First of all i wanna say thanks for the support here ...
So we (me & hubby) booked the appointment for March to the court and im scared like hell...:eek:
I don't even know what are all the proceedings be completely honest...
maybe u guys could give me more of a hint... the lady on the phone said to me that we only need to take the forms and the fees to the court appointment....
and so what happens after ? when we will be contacted by the OR ?
what papers do we need to have ready ?

both of us were self employed, but had to close one of the businesses as was my one that crumbled and put us through all this situation !!!
it's a nightmare and there is no other solution... we have been trying to hold the boat for more then a year, but it's not possible anymore... every day is worse and worse...
on my husband trade there is no debts, as it's what brings the income home...

In advance MANY THANKS

doseduk

hey.. I can answer your questions with my experience when I began this process about a year ago.. this was at Durham County Court, it could well be things differ from place to place..

I showed up at court for the appointment, and was pretty quickly met by a clerk (I think) who was quite prompt in getting things sorted. The only delay was just her finding a free room to use to deal with the paperwork and payment. She checked things were filled in properly and looked over my court fees exemption form. She took the rest of the payment that was due in cash, then if I remember right, she took the documents and everything, and I was required to wait in the main waiting area.

The courts seemed quite busy, at durham that court also deals with family court issues, small claims and some other things, but despite the many people waiting, I was seen very promptly, perhaps after just 10 or 15 minutes waiting. She told me I would now see the judge, she was friendly, and assured me the judge was a very nice man and things. All in all I think they are well aware people aren't going to feel on top of the world and may be very anxious, and they did clearly try to reassure.

Seeing the judge was absolutely fine. I walked into a room with the biggest table I've ever seen in my life. At the top was an oldish man, who kindly welcomed me in and offered me to take a seat by his desk. He was quite to the point, he had looked over my petition, he made some conversation clarifying that I was in debt. I remember he sympathetically said, "struggling?" (with the debt..) and I said yes. He made sure I'd sought professional advice, and within a few minutes of me walking in the room, said "Well I had better declare you bankrupt then" and thus, he noted the precise time and wrote/typed some things, and then 'debriefed' me a bit as to what it meant that I had been declared bankrupt. I'm sure all judges differ, but he really was very sympathetic, supportive and considerate as he briefly went over some key points about bankruptcy, such as info about discharge and what happens next.

After seeing the judge, I did have to wait a bit longer for the clerk that I saw at first to deal with some more paperwork. She then basically cleared up some things, I had a chance to go over anything I was unsure of, I was provided with a copy of the Bankruptcy Petition signed/stamped by the court, and walked back to the car with the weight of the world off my shoulders in lots of ways.

As they had advised, the OR contacts you pretty quickly. I've seen people here concerned as they seem to have had to wait a while, but in my case, the OR contacted me within a few hours, although that was just to introduce themselves and advise that they would be calling again to go over some things. I think they next called within a day or two, this was a generally quite informal call, but they did ask about assets (it was simple in my case as I had none, but I think he was just making sure I hadn't accidentally omitted anything I might have not considered). He also asked about my car, which was exempted as I need it for uni and work. It was then quite a while longer, maybe within weeks, that I had a formal telephone interview with the OR, but that would be explained to you, or you could certainly ask the OR when you speak sooner.

I think mainly, you just need to think about the court obviously.. in my case, once I was there, the clerk advised me of everything further I needed to know/do. Likewise, once out the court, the OR was there to contact with any queries.

You might feel better if you get the number for the court and give them a ring and just explain you've made an appointment to petition for bankruptcy, but have a few queries about the process on the day. I did this and they just cleared up how long things might take and what to expect.

I can't remember entirely but I only remember bringing the copies of the debtor's bankruptcy petition (I forget, is it three copies required, somebody else may be able to correct me there if not?), the form to do with exemption from court fees due to a benefit I get and the cash for the petition. Again, there is no harm in ringing them and just double checking what you'll need to bring, I'm sure they would rather people rang to check than didn't bring what was needed etc..

With any luck in 10 days time you will both be able to walk out the court with a much better outlook on things. It seems like great progress you've made getting this far and securing an appointment with the court. Hopefully this is the end of the nightmare you describe, and a time you will look back on as when things started to get better again.

All the very best, and I hope me sharing my experience of the process is in some way helpful. It could be entirely different, but I guess it can help to at least have a vague idea of what it might be like, or has been like for others.

Good luck x

ninokas

Hi doseduk ... many thanks for ur reply...
it sure helps to know a bit more what im about to experience...
Like u say hopefully all eventually will get better.

National_Debtline

Hello there.

Wishing you all the very best at the hearing. I'm sure you'll find the judge very helpful. Once you've had the hearing you will at some point have a chat with the official reciever - this is usually over the telephone; you can find some good info about what to expect in this booklet:

http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/insolvency/docs/publication-word/12-578-what-happens-when-interviewed-by-official-receiver.doc

Best wishes,

David.

adpod

Hi, Good luck with the date.

Below is a post about my experience of the court proceedings a few weeks ago.

Well thats it, today was the day, I am officially BR and now my life can restart.

I have always read stories about how easy and simple the court day was but never really believed it would be that easy for me. I can tell anyone whos going through it, that the court day was nothing to worry about at all.

I arrived early and the creditors solicitor approached me to confirm I understood why I was there etc etc (bit of an A*se but he was only doing his job). He told me he would tell me when its our turn to go in so I didnt need to worry.

We waited for 30 minutes and then I was called in, the judge was surprised I had turned up as she said I wasnt required, I told her it was my debt and its the least I could do.

She confirmed what the process was and that I couldnt pay it back, she signed the document told me I am free from all debt. I was in the room for less than 2 minutes.

Simple as that...

Just need to worry about the OR now but thats one hurdle over.

I couldnt of been so calm without the help, support and advice from this forum, thank you so much guys.

I'll put another post up after I have the meeting with the OR.

arcon5

I also had an easy experience....

Walked in, waited my turn in seating area to be seen by cashier.
Hand forms. Took a seat again.
Call in to a room 15 minutes later. In this time I believe the forms was checked.
Confirmed why I was there and asked if i'd sought advice before going to the courts.
Approved my applications (didn't need to see a judge. The court I was at she had authority to authorise BR).
I went to sit back in waiting room for 5-10 minutes whilst forms are copied.
Called to desk to pay fees. Received the stamped form back and they wrote my reference number of top of form.
I leave court - in and out in about 25-30 minutes.

ninokas

Thanks very much for ur replies
I'll be giving news afterwards