How bankruptcy attorneys request a bank statement from clients
By Arthur Teboul, DokuTrak · Published
In short
Ask for complete monthly statements for every account the client holds, alone or jointly, through the statement that covers the petition date. Trustees often ask for several months; your local trustee’s practice varies, so follow their written list. Ask for the full PDF from online banking, every page, rather than a screenshot of the balance.
Why bankruptcy attorneys need a bank statement
Bank statements support the account balances listed on Schedule A/B on the filing date. The trustee reads them to compare deposits with Schedule I, to spot transfers or repayments to relatives before filing, and to find accounts the client forgot. Large deposits or withdrawals raise questions at the § 341 meeting, so it is better to see and explain them before filing.
What exactly to ask for
Full monthly statements, all pages, for every checking, savings and money market account in the client’s name or held jointly, including the period that contains the petition date. Check how many months your trustee expects: often several, and the practice varies by district. Ask about money kept in PayPal, Venmo or Cash App as well.
What to check when it arrives
- Every page is present, including the last page with the ending balance.
- Large deposits and transfers out have an explanation, especially payments to relatives or to one creditor before filing.
- The statement covering the petition date is in the set, so the balance on Schedule A/B can be matched.
Email to send your client
Replace the bracketed parts. The same text fits in the message of a DokuTrak request (up to 1,000 characters).
Subject: Your bank statements, all accounts
Hi [Client name],
Thank you for trusting us with this. I know money questions feel personal right now, and everything you send stays confidential.
Please send the full monthly statements for every bank account you have, checking and savings, including any joint account, from the last six months through your most recent statement. The PDFs from your online banking work best, with every page, even the ones that look blank.
Could you send them by [date]? If you closed an account recently or cannot log in, just tell me and we will request the statements another way.
Warmly, [Your name]
Sources
The rules above come from these primary sources. Check them, and your local rules, before you rely on them.
Ask once. DokuTrak does the chasing.
- Your client uploads from one link, with no account and no password.
- Reminders go out on a schedule, by default 2, 5, 10 and 14 days after the request, until the file arrives.
- With AI review switched on in your workspace (it is off by default), each upload gets a first pass that flags a file that is not a bank statement, an unreadable or blurry scan or a copy where one of these is missing or cut off: the account holder, the statement period. It says so when it is not sure.
- You accept every file or mark it for re-upload, and your client gets the note by email. The AI never accepts a file.