Many times clients will come into my office saying that they "don't want to file on" a certain debt. Perhaps it's a credit card they want to keep, a doctor they have a relationship with, or a family member. Rarely do we have black and white answers to bankruptcy questions, but the answer to this is simple: YES, you have to list EVERYBODY you owe money to in your bankrupcy petition. Even if you THINK you may owe someone money, list them. Even if you don't think you owe someone, but they think you do, list them (as "disputed").
What are the consequences of not listing someone on your petition? It is possible that the particular debt may not be discharged. If you are in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy and the trustee discovers assets to administer, leaving someone off of your bankruptcy petition may mean that the debt is not discharged. The same situation can arise in regard to a Chapter 13 bankruptcy. If you discover that you've left someone off your petition, you should alert your bankruptcy lawyer immediately. He or she can file amended bankruptcy schedules, although the court can charge a fee to do this.
Unfortunately, there is no one resource where you can find out all of your debts. I encourage my clients to go to http://www.annualcreditreport.com/. You are entitled to receive a free copy of your credit report once a year from each of the credit bureaus (Equifax, TransUnion, Experian). At this site you can get them with no cost and no need to sign up for phony credit monitoring.
For more information on Chapter 7 and Chapter 13, visit my website at http://www.ohiobankruptcyrelief.com/.
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