I’ve compared my role as a debtor’s attorney as similar to that of a boy scout. My job is to help my debtor client cross the road without getting hit by the bus. A big part of that job is done while preparing. In essence, I get behind the steering wheel of the bus and I ask myself “if I were trying to run over the debtor, what would I be looking for first?” Perhaps a better, and far less macabre way of looking at how I do my job is this: when preparing my client’s case, I pretend that I am trustee and I ask myself: what has my client told me or shown me that would send up a red flag. What could make my client’s life even more difficult than it already is?
When it comes to chapter 7 cases, the decision to file a bankruptcy case is usually preceded by months, if not years of financial difficulties with all of the attenuating pressures, strain, and tension that flows into the household. A properly prepared bankruptcy case without complicated issues can take anywhere from 4-6 months from the date of the filing of the petition to conclude. My view is that debtors seeking chapter 7 relief have already been through enough, and the last thing they want or need is a complication to arise in their bankruptcy case…especially if it is one that could have been avoided. Complications will make that 4-6 month process much longer…perhaps years longer.
The progress of a chapter 13 or 11 case is very different because the goals (reorganize and restructure) are different – but the underlying goal is the same: get the relief you need. Get the plan confirmed. Get the protections afforded by the code. Get some breathing room to get things back on track and enable you to get on with your life.
I cannot tell you the number of times I watched a creditor’s meeting where a question is asked of the debtor and the question catches the debtor and the attorney by surprise. How many ways can you spell “awkward?” Inevitably, you can see the stress on the debtor’s face. My goal is for creditor’s meetings to be quick and easy for my debtor. My goal is to be prepared. My goal is for them to be prepared. My goal is for this process to be as quick and as stress-free as it can be – and given that bankruptcy is an inherently stressful process, that can be a tall order.
There is no easy bankruptcy case – nor are there any simple bankruptcy cases. But a well prepared case can proceed quickly….and as a bankruptcy debtor, you can get your life back on track before you know it.
Related posts:
- Still Think You Can File Bankruptcy Without An Attorney?
- The Easy Life of a Consumer Bankruptcy Attorney
- Honesty and Bankruptcy, Part III: The Reality Check and the Boy Scout
- Wondering What a Bankruptcy Attorney Really Does?
- Honesty and Bankruptcy, Part II: Feeling Dishonest
Tags: attorney, attorneys, bankruptcy attorney
I think that attorneys need to look at it in just the sort of “macabre” manner you alluded to. We aren’t here to hold the debtor’s hand through an easy process, we are here to do battle. Just the very word “bankruptcy” is terrifying to people. I think going into it with your sword drawn is the best way to fight for your client, who, for lack of a better term, would be completely screwed without your help.