September 23, 2010 (Press-News.org) You don't have to have an attorney to file anything. You always have the option of representing yourself in any matter. If you are fairly familiar with the bankruptcy process and have a pretty simple, straightforward case, you might consider this avenue, but for most people it is not the best idea. Bankruptcy lawyers usually charge a flat fee starting in the neighborhood of $1,800 and up. When you are considering bankruptcy, this sounds like a huge fee and makes the "do-it-yourself" route look more attractive, but when you consider that your entire financial future is at stake, calling in an expert starts to make more sense.
Most attorneys will offer a free consultation. Before you decide to represent yourself, do a little lawyer shopping. A good attorney will tell you if bankruptcy is in your best interest or not, whether you should wait to file or file immediately, and also whether your case is so simple that perhaps a document preparer might be a better fit for you as opposed to an attorney. A document preparer can prepare your bankruptcy petition for you but cannot give you legal advice. For this service you would likely part with only a few hundred dollars.
When you are consultation shopping, don't immediately hire the lawyer who charges the lowest flat rate. Take note of how the attorney and his or her staff treat you. Are you treated like a number? Are your calls answered or returned? Can the lawyer explain the fee to you and what it does and does not cover? In our office, our fee covers the filing fee you would have to pay the court to file your case whether you prepared your own documents or not, the cost of the debtor education classes you are required by law to take, and a few other incidental costs you would also incur on your own. Once you know what you would be paying for, can the attorney give you a timeline? Is he or she willing to answer your questions? The minute you start to feel less like a person and more like a potential source of revenue for an attorney, run! There is no shortage of bankruptcy attorneys out there, but not all of them make an effort to care about you as a person, your personal situation and goals and how bankruptcy can facilitate or undermine what you are trying to achieve.
At the end of the day, it is your life and your money. How you choose to spend it is up to you. While you probably don't need to hire the most expensive attorney in your area, keep in mind that in the law, like in other service areas, you do tend to get what you pay for. With that in mind, think carefully about what is important to you and why you are filing for bankruptcy in the first place. Better to do it right the first time by hiring an attorney or document preparer than by going it alone.
Article provided by Arizona Law Group of Trezza & Associates, LLC
Visit us at www.filebankruptcyinarizona.com
Do I Really Need a Lawyer to File Bankruptcy? The Fees Sound So High!
When you are considering bankruptcy, the "do-it-yourself" route looks attractive, but when you consider that your entire financial future is at stake, calling in an expert starts to make more sense.
2010-09-23
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Options for Recovery When Injuries Happen While Working at Sea
2010-09-23
Working as a seaman, deckhand, fisherman, tugboat sailor, processor, or ferry worker is hazardous. Private and commercial vessels are rife with possible hazards, and injuries can happen at any time. In fact, per capita, jobs on the water are the most dangerous ones in the world, resulting in more fatalities than other industries. Though many lose their lives in maritime-related accidents each year, countless others are injured, some of them enduring permanent pain, disfigurement or being unable to return to the job they love.
If you have been injured while working on ...
Traffic Violations Can Cause Car Accidents, Regardless of Who Is Driving
2010-09-23
For all their fame and wealth, celebrities often face the same problems as the rest of us. However, some of these problems - even something as small as a traffic ticket - can seem larger than life for those whose lives are viewed through the lens of media scrutiny. And while negative publicity can certainly damage someone's reputation, the fact is that many famous people receive special treatment from law enforcement.
Lohan In Trouble Again
For example, authorities recently stopped actress Lindsay Lohan when she failed to stop at a stop sign while driving. Rather ...
New Jersey Bankruptcy Filings Increase Over Last Year
2010-09-23
Amid some promising signs of economic recovery, Bankruptcy filings are heading in a less promising direction. Record numbers of businesses and individuals are filing for Bankruptcy in New Jersey and around the country. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court reports that, in the 12 months ending August 2010, New Jersey bankruptcies increased compared to the year before:
- Consumer bankruptcies increased by 6,881 (more than 20 percent)
- Business bankruptcies increased by 23 (just under 2 percent)
- Chapter 7 Bankruptcy filings increased by 6,229 (more than 25 percent)
- Chapter 13 ...
New York Lawmakers Increase Drunk Driving Penalties With Leandra's Law
2010-09-23
Tragic cases often inspire new legislation. When 11-year-old Leandra Rosado was killed late last year when she was riding in a car with a drunk driver, New York lawmakers wasted no time in passing a law in her name, in the hopes of preventing similar future incidents.
Leandra's Law makes it a felony for anyone with a blood alcohol content level of .08 or higher to drive with a child 15 or younger in the car, punishable by up to four years in prison. Under the law, if a child passenger is seriously injured by an intoxicated driver, the driver faces up to a 15 year sentence. ...
CSA 2010: Increasing Safety Through Improved Trucking Regulations
2010-09-23
Because commercial vehicle crashes are still far too common, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has been actively seeking ways to be more proactive about safety monitoring. The result of the agency's efforts is an initiative called Comprehensive Safety Analysis 2010.
Prior to CSA 2010, the odds of a company being subjected to any meaningful onsite compliance review were slim. Due to a lack of staffing and the high levels of paperwork required, each year FMCSA officials have been able to conduct compliance reviews on less than 2 percent of the motor carriers ...
The Dangers of Peer-to-Peer Sharing
2010-09-23
Matthew White admits he was surfing the Internet for pornography two years ago -- not a crime for a then-20-year-old American male. However, CBS reports that White downloaded child pornography onto his computer; he says he did so accidentally while looking for college aged women on LimeWire. LimeWire is a peer-to-peer (P2P) sharing network that allows users to share files, including music, movies, games and pictures, with one another.
White claims that when he discovered the files he had accidentally downloaded, he quickly erased them, saying that the child pornography ...
Accidental Child Pornography Download Can Lead to Jail Time
2010-09-23
Using peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing like Limewire can be an extremely risky endeavor. There are the obvious risks of engaging in copyright infringement or becoming a victim of identity theft, but more and more people have complained that they have accidentally downloaded dangerous material - like child pornography - which was disguised as something more innocuous. This has caused a legal problem for 22-year-old Matthew White of California, who now faces a possible 20 years in prison for having images of child porn buried in his hard drive.
White claims that he tried ...
Senator Thompson's Personal Injury Legislation: The Real Story
2010-09-23
New York State Senator Antoine Thompson recently introduced legislation designed to widen the scope of what is considered a "serious injury" for purposes of bringing a personal injury claim. The law would be somewhat retroactive in nature, covering not just future claims, but any suits pending at the time of its passage. The timing of his proposal has been criticized by some, however, since it comes on the heels of his own personal injury lawsuit.
Timing is a Coincidence
In March of 2007, Senator Thompson was involved in an auto accident in which he suffered deep ...
Positive News for New York Drivers Regarding Insurance Surcharge
2010-09-23
Automobile accidents in New York may not be as costly for insurance policy holders, thanks to recent legislation signed by Governor David Patterson. The new law amends Section 2335 of the Insurance Law, which limits insurance companies from levying surcharges on a policyholder after an auto accident involving property damage.
Section 2335 now prohibits insurers from raising auto premiums after an accident, unless the amount of property damage exceeds $2,000. The prior threshold was $1,000 and was in effect since 1991. Inflation and increasing repair costs made exceeding ...
Hazards of Hard Work: Common Construction Accidents
2010-09-23
Every year, the construction industry ranks as one of the most dangerous in which to work. Construction workers stand on top of buildings and go underground; they operate heavy machinery and handheld power tools; they work with electricity and they work with water; they work on inclines, slants and slopes; they dig holes and fill them in; and construction workers perform many other dangerous tasks on a day-to-day basis.
The Hazards of Falling
The federal government's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) states that "falls are the leading cause of fatalities ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
Male flies sharpened their eyesight to call the females' bluff
School bans alone not enough to tackle negative impacts of phone and social media use
Explaining science in court with comics
‘Living’ electrodes breathe new life into traditional silicon electronics
One in four chance per year that rocket junk will enter busy airspace
Later-onset menopause linked to healthier blood vessels, lower heart disease risk
New study reveals how RNA travels between cells to control genes across generations
Women health sector leaders good for a nation’s wealth, health, innovation, ethics
‘Good’ cholesterol may be linked to heightened glaucoma risk among over 55s
GLP-1 drug shows little benefit for people with Parkinson’s disease
Generally, things really do seem better in morning, large study suggests
Juicing may harm your health in just three days, new study finds
Forest landowner motivation to control invasive species depends on land use, study shows
Coal emissions cost India millions in crop damages
$10.8 million award funds USC-led clinical trial to improve hip fracture outcomes
University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center among most reputable academic medical centers
Emilia Morosan on team awarded Kavli Foundation grant for quantum geometry-enabled superconductivity
Unlock sales growth: Implement “buy now, pay later” to increase customer spending
Research team could redefine biomedical research
Bridging a gap in carbon removal strategies
Outside-in signaling shows a route into cancer cells
NFL wives bring signature safe swim event to New Orleans
Pickleball program boosts health and wellness for cancer survivors, Moffitt study finds
International Alzheimer’s prevention trial in young adults begins
Why your headphone battery doesn't last
Study probes how to predict complications from preeclampsia
CNIC scientists design an effective treatment strategy to prevent heart injury caused by a class of anticancer drugs
NYU’s Yann LeCun a winner of the 2025 Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering
New study assesses impact of agricultural research investments on biodiversity, land use
High-precision NEID spectrograph helps confirm first Gaia astrometric planet discovery
[Press-News.org] Do I Really Need a Lawyer to File Bankruptcy? The Fees Sound So High!When you are considering bankruptcy, the "do-it-yourself" route looks attractive, but when you consider that your entire financial future is at stake, calling in an expert starts to make more sense.