How long should I have to wait for a response from my attorney?

[deedee642]

Cleveland Mom- I actually believe that he does probably file electronically. The thing is - he wants to attend all of the 341 hearings for his clients at the same times. He said something like, "I don't want to be running to the court house everyday". So it sounds like they file like twice a month on behalf of their clients. He had originally told me he was going to file on 11/4. Then he said that I must not have "understood him" and that it was going to be on 11/11 (my birthday). So, I went to his office to sign all the paperwork on 11/10. Once I saw the paperwork, I refused to sign it and said I needed to take it home and look it over, I emailed him that night (last week Wednesday) with questions/clarifications. Have not heard from his since. Nice, huh. Thanks so much for you response and inside prespective. I didn't know if I was being too demanding. But come on, I mean, I am a teacher and if a parent called and I didn't return their call that day. I know my principal would be all over me. It is just the proper thing to do. Thanks again for your comments. Have a good evening.
DeeDee
P.S. Gin works for me! Maybe he has been trying to call me for the past five days but has been getting a busy signal because of all the creditors flooding my lines

[tobee43]

ToBee- Very insightful. Because I am all over the place. As I drove to my "previous (as soon as I can fire him) attorney's office" I was almost giddy. This was finally going to be resolved and one day before my birthday, blah, blah, blah. I was finally dealing with this. I had scrambled and reached all of the deadlines. Then to get there and see the paperwork, not only was it not a CH. 7 but it was a CH. 13, then I read on, and it's a CH 13 with a 100% payback, then I take the paperwork home and see all the other problems and oversights. Then of course I go into total panic mode. This bozo told me to stop paying my credit cards. Hey, why not, I was going to be filing B.K. Well, now I'm not filing. So now I'm just in panic / not-focused mode. I scramble to get enough money together to pay my car payment (I don't want it repossed). I (honestly) just fall back into that good little consumer "oh my god which one's are closest to 30 days past due" and I'm scrambling to pay the minimum on any cards that I could. I have struggled so hard, working THREE jobs for the past FIVE years to bring up my credit score and buy my own home. It was my dream that is now becoming my nightmare. I am in panic mode and making crazy moves. "Save my credit score" / Lose the house or "lose the credit score" / Pay the Mortgage. I thought that last week it would all be resolved, NOT! I hate this. It is like everything is coming undone and I am losing all control. I am making stupid moves and expensive stupid moves. I am talking so out of character, like maybe I won't pay anybody anything until I can figure this all out. (I have not missed a bill in 5 years - I had to work 5 jobs to do this, but I did it all by myself). This is probably the most difficult thing I have ever done or gone through. Thanks for your very kind words. You will really never know how much they meant to me. There is just no one I can reach out to. I am not telling anyone that I work with. I do not want to worry my mother. My boyfriend is being a totally jerk. He filed a quick and easy Ch. 7 like 10 years ago and has no clue about the new rules or how Ch. 13 work (plus I have income/house/403B/etc) my God they are talking about $1800 a month. So not much support there. I should have came to this forum FIRST! Then proceeded. Gee, what did people do before the internet??
DeeDee

clevelandmom is giving excellent advise...and now i want to add in another penny or so...

and you are MOST welcome...anytime...that's why we are here!

here's my penny: a "plan"

STOP paying the charge cards....NOW...pay your CAR....step 1....DONE

step two....ON the phone and getting A NEW atty...i KNOW you paid for the other one ...it was like going to vegas and waking up being SO SORRY you put all that money in that DARN machine...but it's gone now...don't LOOK BACK....LOOK forward!!!!!( i personally would ask for it back since nothing has been filed...but RIGHT now you DO NOT need the stress). once your done getting yourself situated, then write a certified letter requesting your retainer BACK...

step three...interview, interview and interview AGAIN...and i don't care if it's TEN....attorney's..... until YOU feel absolutely comfortable in this uncomfortable situation. please don't let anyone talk you into something that you know is not right for you.

(footnote: we had 4 atty's tell us we were going to have to file chapter 13...well we filed chapter 4..no asset case..discharged no problems).

i can so relate to you, our own son doesn't even know we filed..no one in our family. they just would never understand ...ever.

what did they do before the internet.......i'm NOT really sure? and cell phones??? well, we just talked less and none of us knew how to type...actually i STILL don't type well..

you are going to make it through this...one step at a time. you can do this!! and will! promise!

[deedee642]

Cleveland Mom-
What do you think my chances are of getting all of the paperwork that I filled out for him back? I spent so many hours calculating my last six months income. It got complicated because I was working three different jobs. I had three different W-2's, etc. Do you think I can request a copy of my entire file. The thing is I actually have all of the schedules, etc. I just know that if I go to another attorney, I will be required to fill out another packet. I will have to tweek the numbers because some time has passed, but it would save hours and hours if I could get my hands on that paperwork. I never heard of a chapter 4? For how long did you stop paying your credit cards prior to filing? You see, I really didn't have that luxury because I was going to file suddenly after a job loss and it was going to be beneficial to file in November because my income was less over the summer months (that six months prior thing). However, that ship has sailed. I'll start researching some new attorneys and see what they have to say. Thanks again.
DeeDee

[tobee43]

Cleveland Mom-
What do you think my chances are of getting all of the paperwork that I filled out for him back? I spent so many hours calculating my last six months income. It got complicated because I was working three different jobs. I had three different W-2's, etc. Do you think I can request a copy of my entire file. The thing is I actually have all of the schedules, etc. I just know that if I go to another attorney, I will be required to fill out another packet. I will have to tweek the numbers because some time has passed, but it would save hours and hours if I could get my hands on that paperwork. I never heard of a chapter 4? For how long did you stop paying your credit cards prior to filing? You see, I really didn't have that luxury because I was going to file suddenly after a job loss and it was going to be beneficial to file in November because my income was less over the summer months (that six months prior thing). However, that ship has sailed. I'll start researching some new attorneys and see what they have to say. Thanks again.
DeeDee

NO chapter 4!!!!!!! it was a typo as usual!!! chaper 7 (seven)...(just in case i miss type again and don't see it!) will i ever be able to learn to type!! NO!!

so sorry for any confusion...

next packet come onto the forum with any questions...list your expenses and everyone will help you and you should get some wonderful suggestions etc.

sorry again about typing 4....when it was supposed to be 7.

[Pandora]

Pandora-
Did you ever consider representing yourself? It seems like as clients we have to do so much of the work. After this experience, and all the time and energy I have spent double checking everything he did - I started wondering maybe I can just do this myself. It may sound like I am "with this attorney" just because he will not return any of my phone calls or emails. I guess he did not have any answers to my last email. So "technically" I have not been able to let him know that I no longer require his services. I want to try to get the filing fees and some court fees I paid ahead of time back, since HE WILL NOT be filing on my behalf. I was supposed to have filed on November 11th (my birthday) however, I walked out of his office the night before after getting a look at the paperwork and listening to his condensending nonsence. Thanks for all of your responses. I guess that I am just feeling a little over-exposed and hyper sensitive throughout this whole experience. I feel like my whole life is being examined. It is going to be so hard to work so hard for my paycheck and then be told how I can spend that money for the next 5 years. I'm beginning to see why so many fail.
DeeDee

Morning DeeDee...

To answer your first question... GOD NO! LOL Too much of a headache in a Ch. 13 - now maybe if I were a 7 and wasnt already burnt out from doing a mortgage modification for 8 months.....I would have considered it, but in reality, I'd rather just leave it to a lawyer to handle (7 or 13). Too many scenarios that come to mind and its already stressful enough thinking about BK let alone filing and representing yourself. BUT - with that said, there have been some on here that have successfully represented themselves in a Ch. 13 as well as a Ch. 7 - or both (converting) - and have vast amounts of knowledge in the area; Justbroke and Tigergem are 2 that come to my mind.

I know its stressful - we all do - as we've all been exactly where you are, so dont sweat it It's hard to interpret how things are said / meant when they're typed, so again, no biggie - water off a ducks back.

Reading your post above (last response) - did you happen to keep a copy of what you submitted to the lawyer? One thing I would want to be sure of, even though you said you didnt sign papers - is be 100% certain that you arent obligated to him representing you. Did you sign anything at all (initial visit, thereafter)? Obviously your $800 was enough to retain him, but given you stated he was going to file earlier this month for you...then I'm going to assume the remaining balance would be rolled into your plan...is this what would have transpired? Go back and read through any papers he gave you (you should have received a copy of anything you may have signed) just to be sure (that better safe than sorry thing... I'm a weird that way ). More than likely you probably signed a blanket statement of some sort when you first met with him stating that your consult was done, but it didnt obligate you to use him unless ________________ (insert clause here). Only concern would be if that clause is "unless you pay the retainer fee of $XX, then all other fee's are rolled into plan". Again, I'm probably over thinking it, but...... you never know.

You'll be okay...take a deep breath and remember that we've all been exactly where you are.

[deedee642]

omg - I didn't even think about that. This is how blind I've gone into this. I just thought, well he is being a jerk. I've learned an expensive lesson but I'll move on and try to find someone else. So there is a chance that I have to let him represent me and I can't go with another attorney? I will have to dig up that paperwork. My god that would be awful! I wouldn't even be able to stand to be in the same room with him after how thing went down. I left a message (after no response to my email) that I wanted a reply to my email so that I could proceed accordingly. He wrote a really condesending response like, "I don't know how else I can explain this to you...." yet did not reply to any of my direct questions. I asked for the filing fees back, because he wasn't going to be filing. He said that he did a lot of work on my behalf (which) he was paid for, so he would get back to me about the filing fees. I of course do not agree with this. It said right on the invoice that the $249.00 was for court costs and I never went to court. Yes, he would get paid through the Ch.13. There were like $8,0000 in fees for him and the trustee over the 5 year period.
DeeDee

[LadyInTheRed]

You cannot be forced to use him as an attorney. You can fire your attorney at anytime. I suppose he could claim you owe him money above the retainer you paid him. If he does, just list him as a creditor on your BK petition.

ETA: If you haven't already, write the lawyer a letter telling him you do not want him to do any further work on your behalf.

[Lissy]

I'm sorry you are having such a rough time with this incompetent lawyer. Just what none of us needs at this stage of the game. I don't think you should worry about making credit card payments, especially if you don't have the money. I went 9 months without paying before I even got the first threat of legal action. Your mileage may vary of course, but if you are current now on everything, or only one month late, I think you'll be fine until you find another attorney and file. Even if that is a few months down the road. Once you retain another attorney, any collection calls can be referred to him/her. If they know you're serious enough to have retained a lawyer, they typically will not bother to file any lawsuits against you. So try not to worry about that. You'll need to pay your car/house payments if you are planning to keep them though. Good luck! And know that you will get through this and it will all work out.

[tobee43]

You cannot be forced to use him as an attorney. You can fire your attorney at anytime. I suppose he could claim you owe him money above the retainer you paid him. If he does, just list him as a creditor on your BK petition.

ETA: If you haven't already, write the lawyer a letter telling him you do not want him to do any further work on your behalf.

classic!! just put that atty's name right on there!! LOL!!

[clevelandmom]

Hi DeeDee,
I'm sorry I did not get back to you sooner - I just saw your questions. First of all, as stated by other posters, you have every right to fire your attorney. YOU hired him, YOU can fire him. Call him up and demand a copy of your entire file. Your original documents are to be returned to you - they are YOUR property. This is YOUR file. He may charge you for services he "says" he already provided to you, but if you think they are outrages or you disagree, write him a letter and tell him he needs to lower his fees or you are going to report him to the State Bar and the Better Business Bureau. I highly doubt he could bill you for hours and hours of "research" fees, etc. if he has hardly started your case. Furthermore, I would be willing to bet the majority of fees to date should be mostly administrative. So if he's trying to charge you $3,000 for "opening your file," nail him to the wall.

Your next question about how long I didn't pay my credit cards. In the summer of '09, I went shopping with my sister (this is JUST before dh got laid off), and I went to buy a $35.00 pair of shoes. My cc was denied. I only had $4,700 on a $10,000 card and had no issues making my payments. Out of the blue, the cc company decreased my limit to $4,500 ($200 less then I had already charged up!), and then hit me with overdraft fees, tripled my monthly payment, and made my interest rate jump to an unGodly amount. I couldn't pay their minimum payments because THEY MADE THEM TOO HIGH (bastards). So I stopped paying them until they were willing to work with me. They didn't. A YEAR later I got a lawsuit. I was sued in July, and they finally got to the point of garnishment in November. I filed BK just in time to stop them. They did not get one penny from me. You have plenty of time. Get your file back and start looking for someone else. Best of luck DeeDee!! Please keep me posted on your progress. I wish you the absolute best.

[Pandora]

You cannot be forced to use him as an attorney. You can fire your attorney at anytime. I suppose he could claim you owe him money above the retainer you paid him. If he does, just list him as a creditor on your BK petition.

ETA: If you haven't already, write the lawyer a letter telling him you do not want him to do any further work on your behalf.

Lady's correct - you can fire him at any time - from what I wrote above, I didnt mean to imply you couldnt and just assumed you knew that . I was merely saying that he may think you've hired him to represent you based on what you were stating (him filing for you on XX day, etc). You may be out of $ paid to him, but you certainly have the right to fire him.

I hope it all works out for you and you're able to find an attorney who will sit down and explain everything.

[puggymoo]

I had a similar incident with an attorney and we reliquished his services. I had paid all the fee $2500 and he still hadn't filed in almost 4 months. We only got back $1000 and put the rest down on another attorney. This new attorney filed within a month. They also can file electronically so going to court is not needed. Ours was filed on a holiday. I also filed a complaint with the state bar fees arbitration committee. Trust your gut. good luck

[helpmeout72]

Hi Deedee,

I found your posts and was wondering what ended up happening? What did you do? I have a similar problem in that I emailed all the income info over to my attorney, met with twice before giving him the retainer fee, and then the day I went into sign the filing papers, the atty realized his secretary didn't figure the income correctly and told me I was over the means income allowance, and that I couldn't file.

At this point, he refuses to give me my money back stating that (well his secretary has) that they have already done all the work??? They didn't file (which is $300 filing fee alone) and we never made it to court. I have spent about 2 hours with him total.

I don't know what to do to get my money back?

Any help would be appreciated, even from clevelandmom.

Thanks