You may hear the term "adversary proceeding" and wonder what that is all about. An adversary proceeding is a lawsuit within a bankruptcy. Most of bankruptcy is an administrative matter. The trustee administers the assets by converting them to cash, usually by selling them, and then determining who is owed what and making a distribution of the cash she has to those claimants.
Sometimes there is a matter that needs to be litigated before the bankruptcy judge. An example might be if a creditor believes a debt was incurred fraudulently and wants to object to the discharge of that debt. The creditor would file an adversary proceeding by filing a complaint in the bankruptcy court. The adversary proceeding proceeds just like a lawsuit, with the debtor then filing an answer, discovery taking place, motions, and, ultimately, a trial.
Adversary proceedings are rare. In most cases, if an adversary proceeding is filed, the fee that you paid to your attorney for the bankruptcy will not cover the costs of defending the adversary proceeding.
