I have a joint account with a friend who had put me down as a co-signer because they had no one to will their property to. I filed for bankruptcy in California and the Bankruptcy Court put a freeze on that bank account. What can I do to get the funds released back to my friend?
-- Marian
A.
The bankruptcy schedules ask a question about whether you are holding property for another. This is the place to disclose assets that appear on the surface to be yours but in reality belong to someone else.
A freeze simply keeps the asset from vanishing while a trustee works out what the facts are.
Most trustees will want facts that establish that the money is not yours to spend now. Do you make deposits to the account? Have you ever made withdrawals from the account? Did the account exist before your name appear on the account? Whose tax ID number is on the account?
Work with your attorney to make sure your schedules support the idea that these funds are not yours and to gather any information necessary to help the trustee come to the same conclusion.
