Q: Filing chapter 7 in Louisiana. I’m filing by myself not with my spouse. Everything we have is separate.
Will they ask for his bank statements being that he is not filing. He’s receiving unemployment. They did ask for pay stubs showing he received unemployment, but my question is being that he’s not filing do they normally request a non filing spouses bank statements?
A: When one individual in a household seeks bankruptcy relief, the income of other household members is of interest to the Ch. 7 Trustee, because of the "means test", which determines eligibility to be a Ch. 7 debtor (compared to a Ch. 13 debtor). The presumption is the nonbankrupt household members would be contributing a fair share to payment of household expenses, so the bankrupt's allocable share of those expenses would be reduced (those dollar amounts are includable on Schedule J, and again, to determine whether there may be a "presumption of abuse" (of the bankruptcy process).
Timothy Denison agrees with this answer
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