debtmamma Posted February 2, 2009 Report Share Posted February 2, 2009 I printed out everything at a copy store, and should be elgible for a fee waiver. Do you think it's bad to do it without a lawyer? I don't have any thing I'm protecting it would be just to get credit card debt discharged. Do the creditors usually show up? One thing I don't want to do is deal with a lawyer not having one, BTDT for family court with a lawyer and without one and I will say when you have a lawyer the other lawyer behaves totally different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willingtocope Posted February 2, 2009 Report Share Posted February 2, 2009 Its tough to say. There are lots of people on the board here that have done a BK7 wilthout a lawyer...but...they were all before the BK laws changed last year. Its gotten much tougher to qualify for a BK7. I guess I'd suggest you go talk with a couple of lawyers....most will give you a free consultation. If the consensus is...you qualify...then you could probably take a shot at it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
debtmamma Posted February 2, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 2, 2009 My income is really low, I do qualify for ch7, I guess I am afraid of dealing with another lawyer when I don't have one.I just remembered I pay for a prepaid legal service to a local law firm through my credit union, I am going to find out if this would qualify under that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willingtocope Posted February 2, 2009 Report Share Posted February 2, 2009 In a BK 7, there is no "other" lawyer. Its just you and the BK judge. If your forms are all filled out correctly, he should be satisfied.(Check with your prepaid guy anyway). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
debtmamma Posted February 2, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 2, 2009 Thank you Willing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LadynRed Posted February 4, 2009 Report Share Posted February 4, 2009 Its just you and the BK judge.Correction - it's just you and the bankruptcy TRUSTEE - no judges involved unless an adversary proceeding comes up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
debtmamma Posted February 7, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 7, 2009 Thank you Lady!I have to say, the lady in the local BK office was so nice! She really went out of her way to help me today! She directed me to a form on the website and anwered a couple of my questions. The site is really user friendly too. Of all the government things I have dealt with this has got to be the easiest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DebtLawRookie Posted February 7, 2009 Report Share Posted February 7, 2009 Pick up nolo's latest book on filing ch. 7 bk.Basically, you can do it on your own if you're willing to invest the time and effort. And its sometimes according to the trustee you get, if he/she doesnt like pro se filers, especially if there are many mistakes made in your paperwork, then it could be difficult. Thats when local att's are pretty handy. The trustee knows that the paperwork will probably be correct and that there probably wont be much to question since the attorney has handled it. Plus the att's are usually familiar with the trustees and what bothers the trustee in certain cases.Ive thought of filing on my own if need be after spending the last 3 years learning about it. The biggest factor Ive learned from reading about others who have went through bk is that if you have assets and income that could borderline exemptions, along with questionable charges on CC's or recent personal loans taken out (within the last 90 days). Theres a lot that could be questioned by a trustee, but if your last 2 years of income are legit and any assets are under the exemption amounts to qualify for ch.7 then save yourself the $1200 or more. Ive heard you could also look into paying a paralegal a few hundred dollars to go over your paperwork to make sure you have everything filled out correctly. Also, (if its ok to post this) www.bkforum.com is a great site with lots of friendly folks and good information.Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
debtmamma Posted February 9, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 9, 2009 The operating a business part has thrown a curve ball at me. I really do not keep any financial records for the "business." My 1099s match my tax forms though. I read the trustee can dismiss it for no business financial records. I had around $4,000 last year in 1099 income and all I have is a record of my paid invoices and my taxes. There is no equipment or anything that the trustee could liquidate. I have to do it as a business because that is how the company pays us. I am just scared of spending $300 and it getting thrown out I won't be able to file again for a long time. I am going to send in the paperwork for legal services (like the indigent law clinic) and hopefully have a student look at it to make sure my "I"s are dotted. That is a good point about knowing what the trustee wants. I know with my eviction they said DIY first and they would look it and then call them if I still needed help. I hate to bug them again though they are always so swamped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OMGWhatHaveIdone Posted February 10, 2009 Report Share Posted February 10, 2009 The operating a business part has thrown a curve ball at me. I really do not keep any financial records for the "business." My 1099s match my tax forms though. I read the trustee can dismiss it for no business financial records. I had around $4,000 last year in 1099 income and all I have is a record of my paid invoices and my taxes. There is no equipment or anything that the trustee could liquidate. I have to do it as a business because that is how the company pays us. I am just scared of spending $300 and it getting thrown out I won't be able to file again for a long time. I am going to send in the paperwork for legal services (like the indigent law clinic) and hopefully have a student look at it to make sure my "I"s are dotted. That is a good point about knowing what the trustee wants. I know with my eviction they said DIY first and they would look it and then call them if I still needed help. I hate to bug them again though they are always so swamped.dm, Remember, I am in the same "employment" situation as you. I submitted my tax records as well as a letter from the company that I work for showing that I was an independent contractor. This helped out a lot as it showed the trustee that I was working and had steady income coming in. I successfully filed a CH-13 last year in an effort to save my home. Now, I did it with an attorney and the attorney's fees were rolled right into my repayment plan. The only thing I had to pay up front were the filing fees, which cost $274. On a side note, I've actually taken comfort in having gone through an attorney, because when things came up, he has been able to negotiate on my behalf as well as we've had the plan amended twice so far. Having an attorney is the best thing you can do because even if you file on your own, you never know when something happens and you need to have your plan amended. Either way, you need to decide what is best for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts