Questions Before Filing for Bankruptcy

[Greenrose]

Gee press the wrong button on the keyboard and I erase everything. So here I do again. Hello Everyone, I have lurked here most of the time, and found the articles very interesting. I never thought I would be filing for bankruptcy, you know how you keep praying for a miracle to happen, and it never does? Well my miracle did not happen, and so here I am. I have two very important questions to ask and I hope that you would be able to answer them.

1. Has anyone here every tried filing for bankruptcy by themselves and been successful? I am scared right now, thinking of doing it to save money since we are very low on funds and we have no one to turn to.

2. How do your find a "good" attorney? I do now know anyone who has hired an attorney for bankruptcy and would deeply appreciate your help in this matter. The fees for bankruptcy lawyers on Long Island are pretty high and it would make a deep dent in our saving. That is why it is so important that I find a lawyer who takes his cases seriously and is willing to fight to the end so that I can get discharged.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I hope my post was not too long, and I look forward to hearing from you. Thanking you in advance.

[TXskyblue]

1. I did not file pro se, but others have. There is a pro se forum here.

2. There's a thread on finding a good BK attorney here somewhere. What I did was
a. Google for BK attorneys in my area
b. Remove attorneys that were not board-certified in BK
c. Go for free consultation with some of them
d. Picked one based on how competent they seemed to be and how much I thought I could work with the person

[kornellred]

The only money that you are allowed to keep in a bankruptcy filing are the amounts specified as exemptions - you cannot have "savings" per se. If you have a lot of assets that you need to protect, it is far better to let a bankruptcy attorney handle matters for you. If you have no assets, you can try to file pro se but it is very frustrating.

Unless you receive recommendations from other folks, finding a "good" attorney is largely a matter of luck. You will learn a lot during the initial consultation. Bottom-line bankruptcy procedures are invariable and unavoidable, so the definition of a "good" attorney has mostly to do with their responsiveness to your inquiries. It would be to a debtor's advantage to deal with an attorney who restricts their law practice to bankruptcies and closely related matters.

[Pjmax]

Hi Greenrose, welcome to the forum. Yes, some people do file BK pro se. I considered it myself for about five minutes, and my case was an easy, no-asset Chapter 7. Do you think you can handle it if a problem with your filing arises, such as an AP (adversary proceeding,) a creditor filing an objection; do you have assets to protect! Even if your case may be simple, just KNOWING you have someone to turn to, ask questions of, or handle any problems, is well-worth every penny you spend, and an incredible stress-reliever. Read through some threads in the Pro Se section here, and get an idea of what you may have to deal with.

Filing BK is such a major financial step, unless you have absolute confidence in your ability, not worth cutting corners IMO. That $2000 (or so) can save you so much more in the long run.

You haven't elaborated on your situation, but if you are currently making credit card payments, or any other debt that will be discharged in BK, stop and use that money to pay an attorney. If you do have savings, this is where you want to use it.

Google some BK attorneys in your area, read their websites, you want someone that specializes in BK and has been doing it for awhile. Make a few (3 to 5 is a good start) free consult appts. Many attorneys have payment plans, but the fee usually must be paid before BK is filed. Once you've been to a couple of consults, you'll probably want to come back here and ask opinions or verify information.

[AngelinaCat]

Many people have filed and successfully completed CH7s and CH13s. Look for posts and blogs by our member, Justbroke. He is our premier pro se filer, having started with a CH13, and converted to a CH7.

For an attorney, I suggest calling the clerk of the BK Court in your district, and ask for a list of BK attorneys. They won't be allowed to make recommendations of one person over another, but the chances are good that you will get several names that the clerk's office prefer to deal with. These will be the people who are on time, courteous, well prepared, and have a minimum of changes to make to their clients documents.

[Greenrose]

Thank you everyone for answering my questions, you have all given me very important advice. I will keep reading the other forums mentioned. Once again thank you all.

[ValleYum]

In NY you can choose to use the state -or- the federal exemption set. Exemptions are the stuff you get to keep.

Do you have lots of equity in your home (NY's set will let you keep more) or are you looking to keep cash (the federal set will let you keep more). These are the types of things to absolutely discuss with an attorney - even if it during a 'free consultation' that you use as a learning tool. Using the federal exemption set is fairly new for New Yorkers so make sure to ask your 'interviewees' if they are comfortable using the federal exemptions.

Careful planning (and remember planning is ok!!) can make for a much less stressful bankruptcy. Good luck!!

PS: ASK the attorneys how they like to handle inquiries from their clients (email, phone, etc.) THEN ask their office's policy on call return times.

[bcohen]

If you have little or no assets to protect, such as you rent your home, own an old beat-up car, little or no savings, etc, then yes you can file yourself. In fact, I filed myself back in April, and am expecting my discharge within the next 2 weeks. I used the NOLO book, and this forum for advice. It was not terribly difficult, and I am still a "no asset" case, which means that paying for an attorney would not have resulted in a better outcome.

Now if you have significant assets to protect, such as a home, vehicles, investment properties, ownership interest in a business, stock/investment accounts, then you'd be a fool to "cheap out" and do it yourself. So if you really have nothing to your name for a BK trustee to take from you, then save the money and do it yourself. Otherwise, you really ought to hire an attorney.

[LadyInTheRed]

If you have little or no home equity to protect, depending on what other assets you have, you can exempt cash using Federal Exemptions. But, if you have enough savings to cover attorney fees, the money is well spent on an attorney. Yes, many have successfully filed pro-se. But, it makes your bankruptcy much more stressful and a lot more work. Before you make any decision about whether to file pro-se, consult with a few attorneys and learn all you can about the process so you understand what you are getting into. Not everybody is cut out to file their own BK.

[bcohen]

If you own a home--regardless of whether you have equity or not, or think you have equity or not--you should hire an attorney. Filing pro-se is for people who don't own anything of value, and expect their case to be so simple that paying an attorney to represent them would be a waste of money.

[Pjmax]

If you own a home--regardless of whether you have equity or not, or think you have equity or not--you should hire an attorney. Filing pro-se is for people who don't own anything of value, and expect their case to be so simple that paying an attorney to represent them would be a waste of money.

As a blanket statement, I don't agree at all.

Justbroke had some complicated issues, and filed pro se successfully. I, on the other hand, would fall into your category. Yes, I could have filed myself and feel I am capable of doing so, and after court fees and expenses, I would have saved about $1000. In retrospect, if I were to do it all over, I would still hire an attorney. It was worth every penny, in stress-relief alone.

LIR said "Not everybody is cut out to file their own BK." You do have to weigh the pros and cons, as well as consider the what-ifs.

[LadyInTheRed]

Filing pro-se is for people who don't own anything of value, and expect their case to be so simple that paying an attorney to represent them would be a waste of money.

Even for the simplest case, I don't think hiring an attorney is ever a waste of money. There is value to the piece of mind that comes from knowing a professional is on your side to make sure things go smoothly. Even for somebody who is fully capable of filing their own Chap 7 and doing it flawlessly, there is also value to not having to dedicate the time and effort to do it. Some don't need the piece of mind and don't mind spending the time to file their own petition. But, that doesn't mean that somebody in the same situation who hires an attorney is wasting their money.

[Greenrose]

Thank you, thank you everyone, I made careful notes and I deeply appreciate your help. I am very glad that I stopped lurking and decided to post. I would recommend this Message Board to anyone who is about to file for bankruptcy or going through the process.

[tobee43]

i have to very much agree with what lady is saying here. while i never worked in the field of bk, i still had no doubt i could do it with my background, yet there is a saying from someone i most respect and happened to be an atty himself: Abraham Lincoln Had It Right! - “He who represents himself has a fool for a client." now, i'm not implying jb and other successful pro se'ers did anything wrong, there are exceptions to everything. jb happens to clearly one of those exceptions. a good atty knows when HE or she needs an atty. (and paralegals as well ).

[Pizza]

The Chapter 7 trustee in our case was also an attorney from one of the prominent law firms in our area. This is pretty common. Might be something to consider, since the trustee will be asking you questions and looking for assets.

If you can find statistics your area, you might see a much smaller success rate for pro se filers. The laws are complex. I was also going to file on my own because I thought my case was easy at the time - lo and behold, I'm still learning new things even after filing with an attorney. Was worth it for the peace of mind.