Sometimes, clients will share with me news bytes and other tit bits that I often share with clients. But today, a job-seeking client shared with me a post they found on Craig’s List that was both funny – and a bit troubling.
The ad, found under legal/paralegal jobs, reads as follows:
I am an attorney seeking experienced bankruptcy practitioner to provide occasional guidance. I have successfully filed multiple Chapter 7 petitions but could really use some coaching on filing Ch. 13 - means test, drafting plan, determining length of plan, objections to confirmation. Cases are not complicated, I just need an experienced eye to review my petition/plan, point me in the right direction. I use Best Case. Won’t take much time.
Thank you.
My client – with his somewhat perverse sense of humor – sent it along with the comment “Hey I Found Your Ad on Craig’s List!” in the subject line. I picked up the phone, called him to remind him that Boston is not in the Merrimack Valley and we laughed. But then it got me thinking: who the heck is out there doing chapter 13 work in Massachusetts that feels the need to use Craig’s List to find a mentor?
Putting aside some of the legal issues this raises (such as improper fee splitting – prohibited by the Bankruptcy Code) it seems a bit presumptuous for someone who feels the need to seek a mentor in chapter 13 bankruptcy practice to proclaim that their clients’ chapter 13 “[c]ases are not complicated.”
Perhaps if this aspiring bankruptcy attorney wishes to develop some level of chapter 13 expertise, they could buy Chapter 13 in 13 Chapters. At the risk of tooting my own horn, issues like the means test, the plan, the length of the plan and objections to confirmation are all covered… expertly I might add. Or perhaps they could come to the ABI’s Northeast Consumer Winter Forum on January 18. I’m among the presenters – along with other respected and experienced bankruptcy attorneys, trustees and judges – all of whom take the time to learn a constantly changing and evolving legal terrain.
In the meantime, if you’re seeking a bankruptcy attorney – here in Massachusetts or anywhere else – be sure that the attorney has taken the time to learn and understand the law and is experienced. Do they attend CLE’s (Continuing Legal Education)? Do they write articles? Do they read articles? Do they follow the case law and the issues as they work their way through the courts? Are they equipped to handle the chapter 13 case? And when I use the term “equipped” I mean more than just having access to Bestcase, a software package for bankruptcy attorneys.
That’s really all I can say about the ad. Except for the last remark: “Won’t take much time.”
I just cannot go there.
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- Means Test Not Required in Converted Case
- A Friendly Reminder to List it or Lose it
- Median Income Figures Adjusted
- Storm Preparation: Over Withholding
- When You Discover that You Are a Creditor in a Bankruptcy Case…
Tags: ABI, attorney, bankruptcy attorney, Chapter 13 in 13 Chapters, Craigslist, Massachusetts Bankruptcy Attorney
