consulation with lawyer

[glc4122]

yes i have a question about the consultation with the bk lawyer.
received letter today and has a list of items needed for consultation. i had the impression that a consulatation is giving information verbally with out producing documents,am i correct or not. like to hear from people about there inital consultation.

[HHM]

Well, maybe the lawyer is being conscientious and wants to see the "real" numbers in order to give you accurate advice.

But no, until you actually sign the retainer agreement and pay the lawyer, no documents will be produced.

[Teddy]

The attorney I got had me bring my credit report and my last 2 years tax returns - they didn't really look at the taxes but kept them since I retained him. The credit report was also left there for their use.

I may have made a mistake hiring the first attorney I met with - well the only one!

On my consultation night, he actually wrote a letter to my debt consolidation program telling them to stop deducting my auto-payments. That was after I said I would retain him.

[Cali]

yes i have a question about the consultation with the bk lawyer.
received letter today and has a list of items needed for consultation. i had the impression that a consulatation is giving information verbally with out producing documents,am i correct or not. like to hear from people about there inital consultation.

The person I am seeing tomorrow asked me to bring income, expenses, who you owe and how much.

[PaKettle]

It helps them to know exactly what your financial profile is. I wouldn't think documents would be so important but rather the numbers behind them: how much you make, how much you owe, etc.. My attorney did not require any documents for the consultation but what did help was that I had itemized all my income for the previous 6 months and all my debt, all my set expenses and had my last 2 years of taxes.

It's not necessary for him to see your documents but if that's how he does it, I don't see a problem with it. Better to have an attorney that's thorough than one that is not.

[Cali]

It helps them to know exactly what your financial profile is. I wouldn't think documents would be so important but rather the numbers behind them: how much you make, how much you owe, etc.. My attorney did not require any documents for the consultation but what did help was that I had itemized all my income for the previous 6 months and all my debt, all my set expenses and had my last 2 years of taxes.

It's not necessary for him to see your documents but if that's how he does it, I don't see a problem with it. Better to have an attorney that's thorough than one that is not.

I am going to take my taxes.

Did you write down all expenses as if you were filling out the actual forms?

[PaKettle]

I am going to take my taxes.

Did you write down all expenses as if you were filling out the actual forms?

The more you do in terms of itemizing all your expenses, the better an attorney can determine if you qualify.

A friend of mine was told he could qualify for Ch. 7 by his attorney. He hired the attorney. Then, when the attorney actually filled out his paperwork, he said, "oops! You don't qualify for a 7, you will have to file a 13!" ... You DO NOT want that to happen. So the more accurate info you can provide in these consultations, the better the attorney can determine for sure if you qualify or not.

Somewhere on this site - a sticky I'm sure - there is a link to a web site that has a big list of expenses. This will help you think of things you may not ordinarily think of : tires for your car, car repairs, hair cuts, etc. - things you do spend money on but don't think of much. Check it out and try to think of EVERY expense: car insurance, any other insurance, cat food, etc. etc...

And figure out the 6 months of income leading into filing as accurately as you can - that's gross income. And don't forget: your credit card expenses are NOT expenses because you won't be paying them! But if you are keeping a car or have student loans I believe those are counted as expenses.

I recommend talking to at least 3 attorneys before deciding to go with one. That also helps avoid the kind of situation my friend ran into.

[FreshLikeADaisy]

I went pro se so I don't have much advice in this regard, except a gentle reminder: never give the atty originals. Always keep originals and give the atty, trustee, whoever needs documents, a copy. Yes, it'll cost a couple bucks. But not having your originals available when you need them could cost a lot more. This way, if your atty gets run over by the proverbial bus (or you yourself decide to throw him under one ) you're not stuck with trying to retrieve original documents from him or his office. Always give copies. Good luck!!!

[Cali]

The more you do in terms of itemizing all your expenses, the better an attorney can determine if you qualify.

A friend of mine was told he could qualify for Ch. 7 by his attorney. He hired the attorney. Then, when the attorney actually filled out his paperwork, he said, "oops! You don't qualify for a 7, you will have to file a 13!" ... You DO NOT want that to happen. So the more accurate info you can provide in these consultations, the better the attorney can determine for sure if you qualify or not.

Somewhere on this site - a sticky I'm sure - there is a link to a web site that has a big list of expenses. This will help you think of things you may not ordinarily think of : tires for your car, car repairs, hair cuts, etc. - things you do spend money on but don't think of much. Check it out and try to think of EVERY expense: car insurance, any other insurance, cat food, etc. etc...

And figure out the 6 months of income leading into filing as accurately as you can - that's gross income. And don't forget: your credit card expenses are NOT expenses because you won't be paying them! But if you are keeping a car or have student loans I believe those are counted as expenses.

I recommend talking to at least 3 attorneys before deciding to go with one. That also helps avoid the kind of situation my friend ran into.

Thank you so much.

[lrprn]

Somewhere on this site - a sticky I'm sure - there is a link to a web site that has a big list of expenses.

Here's the website with the list of expenses - http://www.goainc.com/fraley/calcula...alculator.html

[epiphany]

Here's the website with the list of expenses - http://www.goainc.com/fraley/calcula...alculator.html

Crap, my car registration is due in 10 days and I can't find the bill, but viewing the list just reminded me that I think I need to get it smogged. Another expense..Crap.


I didn't know you could put down pet expenses....way cool!

I really need to get on the ball and fill out my paperwork, I must admit, I haven't even looked at it.

ep

[lrprn]

I didn't know you could put down pet expenses....way cool!

Be careful, E - some trustees won't allow pet expenses - depends on local custom. But pet expenses can be hidden inside other expense categories - entertainment (our pets are immensely entertaining!), groceries (our pets eat, right?), and even the catch-all miscellaneous.

Just be sure the pet costs are added in somewhere and that they are reasonable.

[epiphany]

Be careful, E - some trustees won't allow pet expenses - depends on local custom. But pet expenses can be hidden inside other expense categories - entertainment (our pets are immensely entertaining!), groceries (our pets eat, right?), and even the catch-all miscellaneous.

Just be sure the pet costs are added in somewhere and that they are reasonable.

Gotcha.

Entertainment is is!

Got a good laugh out of that.

ep

[cj0203]

Our atty asked us to write everything down that we could think of for the consult but didn't need actual copies of anything until we retained them. (and yes, I also suggest copies! - I was so anal I made a nice pretty binder with sections for income, bank statements, etc; and made a second one for us to keep at home in case!)

[Cali]

Our atty asked us to write everything down that we could think of for the consult but didn't need actual copies of anything until we retained them. (and yes, I also suggest copies! - I was so anal I made a nice pretty binder with sections for income, bank statements, etc; and made a second one for us to keep at home in case!)

It is better to have too much, then not enough. I always make sure all my bases are covered.