The Short Answer
If you file Chapter 13 bankruptcy in the Middle District of North Carolina — which covers Greensboro, Winston-Salem, and surrounding areas — you will be required to complete a phone interview with the Chapter 13 Trustee's office before your case moves forward. You must call to schedule it yourself, and you must call in on time — a missed interview can result in your case being dismissed. The Trustee's office also cannot conduct the interview until they have received all required documents from you, so submitting paperwork promptly is critical. We'll walk you through exactly what to expect and how to prepare.
If you file a Chapter 13 bankruptcy in the Middle District of North Carolina (Greensboro, Winston-Salem and surrounding areas), you will be required to have a phone interview with the Chapter 13 Trustee’s office.
You will need to call the Trustee’s office to schedule your phone interview. Be sure to call in on the date and time it is scheduled for – if you do not call for your phone interview, the Court can dismiss your bankruptcy case!
Another important note: the Trustee’s office cannot do the phone interview with you if they have not received all of the necessary documentation from you beforehand. It is important to submit all of the documents they have requested before the interview!
The night before your phone interview, sit down with the copy of your bankruptcy petition you were given after your signing appointment. Remember: you came to our office for your signing appointment, we reviewed the petition together, and then we gave you a copy of the paperwork after the appointment was done.
During your phone interview, the staff from the Trustee’s office will be looking at the same paperwork that you have a copy of. You need to review it the night before just to refresh your memory on everything we reviewed together.
The purpose of the phone interview is to review the file and ask you any clarification questions the court may have. Remember, our office has had a lot of interaction with you – we’ve asked you a lot of questions, received a lot of paperwork from you, and spent a lot of time with you. The only information the Trustee’s office has is the petition that was filed with the Court and the paperwork you submitted to them. It is important to be patient on the phone during the interview. They are asking questions so they have accurate information about your case. If you get frustrated or impatient, it will not help your case!
Finally, be sure to keep a note pad near you during the interview. If you think of any questions during the phone interview, jot them down and call our office afterwards to talk to us about your questions.
Key Takeaways
- You are responsible for calling the Trustee's office to schedule your phone interview — it will not be scheduled automatically for you.
- Failing to call in at your scheduled interview time can result in your Chapter 13 case being dismissed by the Court.
- The Trustee's office will not conduct your interview until all required documents have been received, so submit everything they request as early as possible.
- The night before your interview, review the copy of your bankruptcy petition from your signing appointment to refresh your memory on the details.
- The Trustee's staff will ask clarification questions based only on your filed petition and submitted documents — staying patient and cooperative makes the process go smoothly.
- Keep a notepad nearby during the call so you can write down any questions that come up and follow up with our office afterward.
Attorney Insight
The mistake I see cause the most unnecessary panic is clients who don't take the petition review the night before seriously — they go into the call cold and stumble on basic questions about their own income or expenses, which raises flags for the Trustee's staff. In the Middle District, the Trustee's office — whether that's Anita Jo Kinlaw Troxler's team in Greensboro or Brian Hayes's office in Winston-Salem — is thorough, and they will press for clarification if something doesn't add up. A hesitant or flustered answer doesn't automatically sink your case, but it can generate follow-up requests that slow everything down. Thirty minutes with your petition the night before prevents most of that friction.
