What Documents Do I Need for a Bankruptcy Audit?

One in 1000 bankruptcy cases are randomly selected by the U.S. Trustee for audit.  When that happens, the debtor is sent a letter requesting copies of the following documents:

1. Payment advices [paystubs] from an employer covering the six calendar months preceding the date of filing for the debtor and the debtor’s spouse.
2. Federal income tax returns, with all attachments, for the two tax years prior to the date of filing.
3. Financial account statements for the six calendar months preceding the date of filing and for the month of filing for every financial account in which debtor had an interest; and documentation explaining the source of every deposit or credit, and the purpose of every check, withdrawal or debit.
4. A divorce decree, property settlement orders going back three years and pending child support orders, if such documents exist.

The audits are supposed to find material misstatements in the bankruptcy paperwork. What the audits have found is debated.

Bankruptcy blogger Peter Orville of Upstate New York did a series of posts on the Bankruptcy Law Network on the debtor audits that are worth revisiting:

1. What have the bankruptcy audits found?
2. What do I do if my case is chosen for audit?
3. What is the time line for an audit?
4. What does the audit firm do if my case is chosen for an audit?
5. What if the auditor of my chapter 7 or chapter 13 case finds a material mistatement?