“You know, I do online banking so I don’t keep a check register anymore. Is that going to create problems in my Chapter 7 case?”

Well the answer is it might. There’s an obligation in Chapter 7 that you maintain records sufficient to enable creditors and the trustee to really ascertain your financial condition, so they may want to see where you’ve been spending your money, how you’ve been spending your money, and how you’ve been managing your finances over the year or two before you file bankruptcy.

If you don’t have a check register, if you keep everything online, you’re at the mercy of that bank in pulling everything together and explaining to the trustee where the money went. There is the obligation under the bankruptcy code that you maintain records so that they can ascertain your financial condition; and if you don’t, you will not get a discharge in bankruptcy, and that is the worst result of all.