How to add a debtor portal to Best Case Cloud without replacing it

Many bankruptcy practitioners rely on Best Case Cloud for case preparation and electronic filing. However, the platform does not offer a dedicated, secure client intake portal for debtors to upload their own financial data. This guide explains how to add a standalone debtor portal alongside Best Case Cloud, creating a streamlined workflow for gathering bank statements and transaction histories without disrupting your existing filing process.

A debtor portal is a separate, secure web application that clients use to link bank accounts and upload documents. It automates the collection of 90+ days (up to 24 months) of transaction data, which can then be exported as court-ready PDFs. These PDFs are manually handed off to Best Case Cloud for schedule preparation and filing, keeping your ECF workflow intact.

Key Takeaways

• A debtor portal functions as an add-on to Best Case Cloud, not a replacement, handling only the initial client data intake.
• The core workflow involves a secure invite, client-side account linking via a secure bank-data connection, and automatic transaction pulls.
• Exported PDFs containing bank transaction histories are designed to meet common court documentation requirements.
• All official case preparation, schedule creation, and electronic filing through ECF remain exclusively within Best Case Cloud.
• This separation of duties can improve client experience and reduce manual data entry for the law firm.

Why Add a Debtor Portal Alongside Best Case

Best Case Cloud is a robust tool for preparing bankruptcy petitions, schedules, and statements, and for filing them via the court's Electronic Case Filing (ECF) system (Best Case Cloud Product Overview, Best Case, bestcase.com). Its strength lies in form completion and compliance with federal and local bankruptcy rules. However, its design does not prioritize the initial, secure collection of sensitive financial data directly from the debtor.

A dedicated debtor portal software fills this gap. It provides a client-facing interface where debtors can independently link their checking, savings, and credit card accounts. This process uses a secure bank-data connection to pull transaction histories, eliminating the need for clients to manually gather, scan, and email PDF statements.

How the Workflow Looks

The integration is a sequential handoff, not a technical merger. The portal handles data acquisition from the debtor's financial institutions. The firm then reviews the data and imports the necessary documents into Best Case Cloud for schedule preparation.

Step 1: Send the Debtor Invite

The process begins within the portal's dashboard. The paralegal or attorney initiates a new case and enters the debtor's basic contact information, typically an email address and phone number. The system then sends a secure, unique invitation link to the debtor.

Step 2: Debtor Connects Financial Accounts

After logging in, the debtor is guided to connect their financial accounts through a secure bank-data connection. The debtor selects their bank or credit union from a list and authenticates with their financial institution. Crucially, the firm and the portal never see or store the debtor's online-banking password; the connection generates a read-only access token with the financial institution.

Step 3: 90+ Days of Transactions Auto-Pulled

Once the accounts are linked, the portal automatically pulls the available transaction history. For bankruptcy purposes, a minimum of 90 days of transactions is typically required for the schedules and Statement of Financial Affairs (Bankruptcy Forms, United States Courts), and the connection can pull up to 24 months with scheduled refresh — useful for the §707(b) means test six-month CMI lookback (11 U.S.C. § 707(b), Cornell Law School) and for Chapter 13 plan confirmation (11 U.S.C. § 1325, Cornell Law School).

Step 4: Export Court-Ready PDFs

After the data pull is complete and the debtor has uploaded all necessary documents, the firm is notified. With a single click, they can export the transaction history for each linked account as a standalone PDF, or as a PDF/ZIP financial packet organized by account and date range. These PDFs are formatted to clearly show the account holder, institution, full account number, and the complete date-range of transactions.

Step 5: Hand Off to Best Case Cloud

The final step is a manual, controlled transfer. The exported PDF bank statements and any other uploaded documents (pay stubs, tax returns) are saved to the firm's local system or document management software. From there, they are uploaded into the corresponding Best Case Cloud case file (bestcase.com).

What Stays in Best Case

It is critical to understand the boundaries of this workflow. The debtor portal is an intake and organization tool. All substantive legal work and court interaction remain entirely within Best Case Cloud.

Specifically, Best Case Cloud retains exclusive control over:

• Official Form Preparation: All schedules (A/B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J), the Statement of Financial Affairs, and the Declaration About an Individual Debtor's Schedules are prepared and stored here (Official Bankruptcy Forms, uscourts.gov).
• Means Test Calculation: The Chapter 7 Means Test and Chapter 13 Disposable Income calculations are performed within Best Case using its integrated calculators (11 U.S.C. § 707(b), Cornell Law School).
• Document Assembly: The final petition, including all schedules and local forms, is assembled into a single filing package by Best Case.
• ECF Filing: The electronic transmission of the petition and all associated documents to the bankruptcy court's CM/ECF system is handled exclusively by Best Case Cloud's filing module (CM/ECF, PACER). The portal has no connection to ECF.

Conclusion

Adding a dedicated debtor portal to your practice does not require abandoning the powerful filing capabilities of Best Case Cloud. Instead, it creates a complementary system where a specialized tool handles secure client data intake at $39 per case (or $59 per case with AI forensic transaction analysis that flags potential §547 preference payments (11 U.S.C. § 547, Cornell Law School), §548 fraudulent-transfer candidates (11 U.S.C. § 548, Cornell Law School), structuring, gambling, and undisclosed accounts), and Best Case continues to manage case preparation and court filing.

ZIP financial packet.

Does this touch ECF or filing? No, the debtor portal has no connection to the Electronic Case Filing (ECF) system (pacer.uscourts.gov).

Sources

• Best Case Cloud Product Overview — Best Case (a Stretto company). Accessed 2026-05-18.
• Official Bankruptcy Forms — United States Courts. Accessed 2026-05-18.
• Chapter 7 and Chapter 11 Filing Requirements — United States Courts. Accessed 2026-05-18.
• 11 U.S.C. § 707 - Dismissal of a case (means test) — Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School. Accessed 2026-05-18.
• 11 U.S.C. § 1325 - Confirmation of plan — Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School. Accessed 2026-05-18.
• 11 U.S.C. § 547 - Preferences — Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School. Accessed 2026-05-18.
• 11 U.S.C. § 548 - Fraudulent transfers and obligations — Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School. Accessed 2026-05-18.
• CM/ECF (Case Management/Electronic Case Files) — PACER. Accessed 2026-05-18.

Bankrupt Pro is software built by AI Visionary Group LLC and is not a law firm. Bankrupt Pro does not provide legal advice. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.