Nervous about court date next Wednesday

AliceD84

Hi Everyone

I've got my court appointment next Wednesday 10am to apply for bankruptcy.

I'm getting a bit nervous about it all and have got a couple of concerns going round and round in my head.

Thought there might be people on here who have been through it and can answer my questions.

This probably sounds really silly, but is it ok to go to the court with someone? OH is away with work that day so my Mum was going to come with me for moral support. Obviously I understand she won't be able to come in with me for the official bit (I honestly don't actually know what to expect on the day or how it works!) but it won't be a problem for her to sit with me for the hanging around bits?

Also, I think this will be more OR related but I'm panicking about it a bit. I have no income as unemployed at the moment and absolutely no assets. The only things that will be on my forms are my car that I sold 2 weeks ago. I sold it so I could raise the funds for the bankruptcy. I got the lower end of the market value for it (£1250) so don't think that'll be an issue. Obviously £700 will go to court with me but then I will have spent a couple of hundred of the excess on bits and bobs. My mobile phone bill and food mostly! So I'll probably only have £300 cash in hand left to declare.

Is the OR going to scrutinise where every penny of that money has gone? I will be able to show them with bank statements etc (although it's actually in OH's account) but am I going to be questioned and told off! Haha, sound like a child going to see the headmaster!

If anyone could give me an idea of what to expect next Wednesday and also what to expect from the OR phone call. Will I be on the phone for ages having to justify why I took on the debts or how they accrued and why I'm unemployed? Im not looking forward to it at all!

I'm really hoping that my case will be very straight forward (no property, assets or income) and so a long interview won't be necessary but I don't know!

Ok, breath! Going to go and make a cup of tea and try and chill out. Really can't wait for next week to be over though!

Thanks in advance! )

DesperatelyLost

Hi Alice,

Yes, you can take someone for moral support, although not sure if they'll be allowed into the court room with you. As I went on my own I really don't know, but either someone will post a yes/no or you can ask on the day.

As for your other question, you should be ok, as long as you can show the OR that you were putting the money to good use then I doubt it'll be an issue. When they called me after my BR it was just to run through my forms and confirm a few details, all over in 10 minutes. If you have any questions write them down so you remember to ask them, its easy to forget when you're nervous.

Its easy to say after the fact, but there's nothing to be worried about, on the day of my BR I was bro king it, but the judge put me at ease, he told me he was not there to judge me (lol) but to see that I cannot pay my debts. He asked a few questions then signed my forms, I think I was in the court room 20 minutes or so.

My OR has been great too, never critical or judgemental and I've never been scared to phone them.

I'm 1 month from discharge, it really does fly by. Just make sure you're completely honest (with your forms, the judge and OR) and you'll be fine.

Good luck.

Helpmeoutofthismess

Hi aliced84,

I went bankrupt 3 months ago and it was not awful at all, please don't worry about going to court. It will be fine to bring your mum along for moral support, there will be lots of people with their own troubles milling around.

Hopefully you will get an OR as lovely as mine but no matter what, as long as you are open and honest they will be fine! They are just trying to get an understanding of how you have ended up in a pickle so they can let your creditors know in the report they write up.

Depending on your husbands income you might be able to get some remission on your court fee's, have a look here to see if you might qualify

http://www.justice.gov.uk/forms/court-form-finder?sq_content_src=+dXJsPWh0dHAlM0ElMkYlMkZobWN0c2Zvcm1maW5kZXIuanVzdGljZS5nb3YudWslMkZjb3VydGZpbmRlciUyRmZvcm1zJTJGZXgxNjBhLWVuZy5wZGYmYWxsPTE=

Good luck on Wednesday, let us know how you get on!

H x

IF

Hi Alice, I agree with DL and HMOOTM, do let us know how you get on.

Here's my tongue in cheek checklist, what to take to court :-

- Your two copies of 6.27 and 6.28 and the Originals, do not sign them, you do this in front of the clerk. Your completed EX160 if applicable and any benefit letters/forms etc as proof.

- Money for bankruptcy fees.

- Spare change for coffee machine.

- Paper or magazine to read while waiting.

- Change for car park.

- Optional a friend to chat to/hold hand......essential


Best wishes
IF

AliceD84

Oh thank you so much everyone for your replies! I don't know why, I got a bit tearful reading them! It's so nice to hear reassuring things from people who have gone through it themselves.

On the whole, I've been trying to be quite matter of fact and logical about the whole thing but every now and then (especially as it's getting closer) I have a little wobble and get a bit upset.

Selling my car was the worst bit. It sort of brought it home to me, the mess I've got myself in! I sold it to my local Vauxhall dealership and it was the sh##tiest feeling sitting in a showroom surrounded by nice shiny cars and having to hand the keys to mine over. I only got it 3yrs ago and it felt like 5 minutes ago I was in a shiny showroom all excited picking it up (while obviously putting to the back of my mind the fact it was bought with a loan!). Had a right old blub on OH's shoulder when we got out of there! lol

I'll definitely post next Wednesday evening at some point and let everyone know what the experience was like! This forum is an absolute godsend for me at the moment and is really helping me!

Thanks

DigForVictory

If has it bang on - right down to the mundane stuff like change for the coffee machine & a blinking good read as well as the papers you're supposed to have.
I only went to court for PPI but was very twitchy & the waiting room was neat but empty. I took Rudyard Kipling (Kim, IIRC) as somewhere to escape to.
Let us know how it goes?

Lensman_2

I would add to IH's very practical advice with the following:

Dress code is smart casual. (You won't get thrown out for jeans and a t-shirt but you will feel better if you are dressed appropriately).

You didn't say what court you are up in, but judges in regular county courts sit in offices so it is fairly informal. No open court or journalists, public galleries and so on to worry about.

Don't be surprised (or feel cheated) if the clerk takes your paperwork to the judge and gets it signed without you having to see them.

The OR will want to know about hundreds of pounds - not pence. They will want to:
1. Find out about your history over the last couple of years (usually only 2).
2. Want to know that you haven't been spending money that should have gone to creditors. Again, this is hundreds. If you have been spending £200 a month on gambling it will ring bells. If you failed to pay £20 because you had to buy food it won't be a problem.
3. Want to know if they will request an IPA. This will depend on your circumstances.

Good luck on the day. Hopefully it will be easier than you think.

Flm67

I went BR on 31/7/12. No court date as I live in Scotland so probably a bit easier here. I'm now discharged and I've got to say the year will fly in. Good luck

Action_Jackson

Are you applying for bankruptcy (handing in the forms) AND being declared bankrupt on the same day? In my case it was a two trip process, once to hand in the forms, then go again to actually be declared bankrupt.

Don't worry about the day in court - think of it as a rather mundane trip to a busy doctor's surgery, and you'll get the idea. Lots of people going about their business with no real interest in yours.

I see no reason why someone can't accompany you - it's a public building after all, although they might not be allowed into the judges's 'chambers' (just a private office room).

In my case, the judge didn't even want to see me, although they are keen to ensure you've taken some form of advice before rubber-stamping your petition - I'd already spoken to StepChange (CCCS) and mentioned it on my forms which is maybe why they didn't want to see me.

As you're unemployed with no assets, the OR will almost certainly become your trustee for the period of your bankruptcy, rather than an external Insolvency Partitioner. This is a good thing, because I've heard external IPs can be difficult. They don't seem to give early discharge these days, so your BR will probably last the full 12 months.

As for the cash you received after the car sale, as long as you've spent it on sensible stuff like groceries, essential travel, rent etc., or you need the remainder of it for such things, the OR won't be interested,

I found the OR's office to be staffed by objective professionals, who are basically no nonsense and simply want to understand why you became bankrupt and what happened to any assets you had. Mine were quite sympathetic. As long as you haven't tried to hide anything from them e.g. by selling your £20,000 art collection to your partner for £5, then you'll be fine.

While the BR restrictions last 12 months, you need to watch out for the IPA which lasts for three years. They basically take all of your disposable income for three years after the IPA is signed. As you're unemployed you won't have an IPA initially, but if you find a job, you income will be assessed for IPA suitability.

Good luck and try not to worry - ultimately, there are far worse things that can happen to people. Just look forward to your fresh start with a wiser head on you.

AliceD84

Action_Jackson wrote: »

Are you applying for bankruptcy (handing in the forms) AND being declared bankrupt on the same day? In my case it was a two trip process, once to hand in the forms, then go again to actually be declared bankrupt.

Don't worry about the day in court - think of it as a rather mundane trip to a busy doctor's surgery, and you'll get the idea. Lots of people going about their business with no real interest in yours.

I see no reason why someone can't accompany you - it's a public building after all, although they might not be allowed into the judges's 'chambers' (just a private office room).

In my case, the judge didn't even want to see me, although they are keen to ensure you've taken some form of advice before rubber-stamping your petition - I'd already spoken to StepChange (CCCS) and mentioned it on my forms which is maybe why they didn't want to see me.

As you're unemployed with no assets, the OR will almost certainly become your trustee for the period of your bankruptcy, rather than an external Insolvency Partitioner. This is a good thing, because I've heard external IPs can be difficult. They don't seem to give early discharge these days, so your BR will probably last the full 12 months.

As for the cash you received after the car sale, as long as you've spent it on sensible stuff like groceries, essential travel, rent etc., or you need the remainder of it for such things, the OR won't be interested,

I found the OR's office to be staffed by objective professionals, who are basically no nonsense and simply want to understand why you became bankrupt and what happened to any assets you had. Mine were quite sympathetic. As long as you haven't tried to hide anything from them e.g. by selling your £20,000 art collection to your partner for £5, then you'll be fine.

While the BR restrictions last 12 months, you need to watch out for the IPA which lasts for three years. They basically take all of your disposable income for three years after the IPA is signed. As you're unemployed you won't have an IPA initially, but if you find a job, you income will be assessed for IPA suitability.

Good luck and try not to worry - ultimately, there are far worse things that can happen to people. Just look forward to your fresh start with a wiser head on you.

Oh, I don't know then. From what I'd read on here and other sites I thought the day you go to court, hand your forms in and pay the fee is the day you're declared bankrupt? I phoned a couple of weeks ago and made the appointment with the court. The girl on the phone was pretty friendly but didn't seem to know much about the process. She just said bring 3 copies and the money. I asked if I should bring ID and she didn't know. It was weird, it was like making a mundane doctors appointment! I'll wait and see what happens then.

Yeah, I've been upfront about all money and assets and I spoke with stepchange beforehand. I don't think I've mentioned that on my forms, maybe I should.

I was thinking the OR might not be interested in the puddly amount of money that's left from my car but I won't bank on keeping it just in case!

Thanks for the tips )

tiggerbodhi

Hi,
If is right with the list, it is like a mundane doctors appointment, actually probably easier as they wont tell you you are unhealthy!

My court it was pay the money and hand in the forms, nice lady calls you into a side room and goes through the forms with you, go back two hours later to see the same clerk as the judges look at the BR's in their Tea Breaks...

Remember this is probably the only time you will do this, the clerks and court are doing this 10 or so times a day, they want to enjoy their day and being nice really helps both ways.

You can take anyone you like with you for hand holding, it is easy to say afterwards but the feeling walking out is good, knowing there is an end to it all, being able to say to DRC's go away.

Only thing I would add to If's list is a couple of quid for a big F Off cake afterwards, you deserve it!

Good luck....:):)