How Long Does a Lawyer Need to Prepare and File a Bankruptcy Petition?
I recentley contracted with a bankruptcy attorny on March 1st filled out all the info he needed to file by the 10th of March. How long should it take for him to file. Every time I call the office they tell me they are short handed and real busy and will let me know.Now its the end of April and they are still saying the same thing. My question is How long should it take to file after the attorny has all the information he needs.
– Dan
Jonathan Ginsberg responds: Dan, thanks for your question. It does seem to me that two months is a bit long to wait. However, I will tell you that under the current bankruptcy law rules, it can take a lawyer several weeks to gather all the information he needs to file. For example, I ask for a completed questionnaire, copies of pay stubs from all household earners for the current month as well as for each of the previous six months, copies of credit reports from all 3 credit bureaus, last year’s tax returns, the credit counseling certificate, and copies of two forms of ID – as a minimum.
You may want to make sure that there is not a communications gap whereby your lawyer is waiting for you to supply needed information. If all you get is "we are really busy," it may be time to seek another lawyer. If you can’t get a call back before your case is filed, what do you think will happen after it is filed?
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Comments on How Long Does a Lawyer Need to Prepare and File a Bankruptcy Petition?
As a legal secretary who works for someone who does a little bankruptcy, I can guess it’s probably a communication gap between the staff and the attorney. That is, the staff has input all the information they could until they ran into a brick wall for whatever reason. Now, they’re waiting for an answer from the attorney as to what to do. Who knows?
Anyway, if you’ve already received your counseling certificate, time’s a running. The next time you call them, like Jonathan said, you may want to ask if they need anything else from you. Which, by the way, they definitely do. At a minimum, they need your March payroll or income information, and now, probably, April.
Jonathan, I don’t recall if I’ve ever posted a comment to your blog before. So, if not, I just want to say, I really enjoy it and have benefited from it personally and professionally. Thank you. Nellie.
wow ! i paid my lawyer november 2010 and he still hasnt filed as of january 2012 ! i have had to get 2 bankruptcy classes done now – and tomorrow i am contacting another attorney to start over and then will sue the 1st lawyer for what i paid him
Lisa, if you paid a lawyer in November to file your case and nothing has happened, I think that you can reasonable expect that your money should be returned. Perhaps, however, there is a reason why the 1st attorney did not file – for example, maybe lawyer #1 did not have all of the information and paperwork he needed to do so. In situations like this, I would suggest that you ask your 2nd lawyer to help you by politely approaching the 1st lawyer to ask for a reimbursement. Before filing any lawsuits, see if you can reach an accommodation with lawyer #1.