A trustee is assigned in all Chapter 7, 12, and 13 cases and some Chapter 11 cases. They are appointed by the U. S. Trustee and are generally, but not always, lawyers. A trustee works on behalf of the bankruptcy estate and all of its creditors. Their fees come out of the bankruptcy case filing fee or from the money collected in a bankruptcy case. The trustee is not the debtor's attorney and does not represent the debtor.

The trustee's job is to administer the bankruptcy "estate" to make sure creditors are treated as anticipated by the Bankruptcy Code. The trustee can require that a debtor, under penalty of perjury, provide information and documents for review before, during, or after the meeting of creditors. The trustee presides over the meeting of creditors, and files a report of findings in the bankruptcy. In Chapter 7, the trustee may collect and sell non-exempt property, and pay out money on a percentage basis to creditors who have filed a claim. In chapters 12 and 13, the trustee receives the plan payments, and makes payments to the creditors based on the approved plan. Failure to cooperate with the trustee is grounds for a debtor's discharge to be denied.