Bankruptcy Lawyer
Filing bankruptcy is a serious step, and a difficult one for most people. It is also a step to most people are very reluctant to take, it is a totally unfamiliar process, too. It can be confusing and stressful. Many people wonder, how do you know that you’re asking the right legal questions? There are a lot of legal questions to ask your bankruptcy lawyer. Below there has been a list compiled of the most frequently asked legal questions of a bankruptcy lawyer.
The first of the top legal questions asked of a bankruptcy lawyer is how much of your legal practice is devoted to bankruptcy cases? Asking this will allow you to get a good idea of how qualified the bankruptcy lawyer is. After all, a bankruptcy lawyer who has been doing two or three cases a year for 20 years may be less experienced over all than an attorney who has been doing nothing but bankruptcy cases for three years. The laws have changed, and it is difficult to keep up if bankruptcy is not a significant part of your practice. So this is an important question to ask.
The next important legal questions to ask you bankruptcy lawyer is what the best way to contact them will be. Your lawyer may say I get a lot of phone calls, but the best way to contact me is by e-mail. I can answer e-mails faster, and I don’t have to go through the annoying telephone tag thing. But your attorney may differ. It is important for clients to leave detailed messages when they call, and to always leave a number.
Other important legal questions to ask your bankruptcy lawyer are, Is bankruptcy a good option for me, and why (or why not)? This covers a lot of ground, but a bankruptcy lawyer should be willing to discuss your options, and explain their recommendations and answer any legal questions you may have. Usually a lawyer will discuss both Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 with consumer clients, make a recommendation and explain why. Occasionally a lawyer will talk to someone who needs to make a decision that will affect that recommendation, but your bankruptcy lawyer can lay out the options. Also sometimes it is recommended against filing bankruptcy, for specific reasons.
Many clients will also ask legal questions about the negative effects of a bankruptcy. A lawyer will try to give clients some idea of the negatives of filing bankruptcy, compared to the negative things that will happen if they do nothing. You should have a clear understanding of what property, if any, is likely to be considered an asset in a Chapter 7 case, or the steps a Chapter 7 trustee may take to make that determination. It is not always feasible to give an estimate of the amount of payments in a Chapter 13 case until all relevant information has been gathered, but you should have some idea of the information that will be needed, which is why you need to ask any and all legal questions that you have.
