Can I Submit an Emergency Filing to Initiate Bankruptcy Proceedings and Buy Time to Complete All the Forms?

An emergency Bankruptcy filing — or “skeleton petition” — is the filing of a limited number of the required bankruptcy forms, as compared to a complete schedule and petition.

Within 14 days after filing the emergency petition, the balance of the schedules must be filed with the Court.

One consideration: know that the entire Chapter 13 petition can be prepared in 6 – 8 hours, depending on the complexity of the case and the ability of the person completing the documents to understand and focus on them.

If such an amount of time is available to you prior to the need to make a filing, it may be a good strategy to file a complete petition and all of the required schedules, as compared to a skeleton version.

Especially given that only 14 days are allowed after the initial filing…