Think I am going to switch attroney's I was going to use

[jb300]

Well I think I have decided to switch attroneys. I had emailed the one I thought I was going to go with over a week ago with a question and he has never answered me back.

I just emailed the one that my son used a few years ago and he answered me back on a Sat. afternoon.

This new attroney also uses a flat fee and he doens't have you fill out the packet, he has you come in and you fill it out together. He tells you what to bring in and he says it is more efficent and saves time.

So I am going to finish getting my business stuff together, copy off a few more things and then set up the appointment. I hope within a week to be able to have everything together.

What are your thoughts... does it sound like a good decision to go with one who is prompt in getting back to you?

[jeb]

Sounds good to me, jb300 but I do question taking everything to the attorney.

There is A LOT to bring together before even starting to fill out the forms and my attorney gave me a packet to follow and as I went through it I would have to stop and go look for something I had missed. THEN I gave it all to the attorney and his staff put it together for the Trustee - all I did was then check it over and sign.

Seemed like the better way to do it that spending hours sitting in an attorneys office - with him. Can't even guess how he would charge for something like that and come even close as to his hours involved.

But as to going with an attorney that gets back to you over one that does not - you bet. Do remember, however, that BK's are up dramatically and most BK attorneys are working with heavy work loads right now. - jb

[jb300]

This is straight from his website:

Office Appointment

You will bring your fees ($1,199 total) and the documents listed below to J***'s office. Jeff will go through your case in detail before accepting your fees. If you are not eligible, J*** will not accept your fees and you pay nothing. If you are eligible, J*** will do your entire petition during this appointment. That way we can file your case quickly and you are not sitting at home filling out a long, confusing packet. We don't use packets.

$1,199 in cash or money order
Credit Counseling Certificate (you can get this online at [link deleted by moderator])
All bills you intend to discharge (credit cards, medical etc.) w/ account numbers, full address
Creditor information (full address, account #'s) on debts you will keep like home or car loans
Last two months pay stubs from work (including your spouse even if they are not filing)
If you do not receive wage income, bring records of other income for the last six months
Most recent state and federal tax returns
W2's for the last two years
Legal Description of your Iowa home if you own from your abstract or tax bill
Proof of valuation of your Iowa home such as tax or other appraisal if you have them
Photo ID and Social Security Card or proof of social security number
Hearing

J*** will attend your bankruptcy hearing with you. There is no Judge or courtroom, just a trustee who will ask if you listed all your bills, all your assets, whether you had more than $1,000 ($2,000 joint [state deleted by moderator] bankruptcy filing) in your bank accounts on the day of filing and so forth. J*** will assist you if creditors appear or the trustee is concerned about any issues on your bankruptcy.

Discharge

About 9 weeks after your hearing you will receive your discharge order in the mail meaning you are no longer responsible for the debt. If you continue to receive bills from any of your discharged creditors you can just send them to us and we will take care of them.



and this...How much does it cost?
For Chapter 7, we charge a fixed fee of $900 and there is a $299 filing fee. Your entire case will cost $1,199. We do ask for the $900 attorney fee up front since we become a dischargeable creditor, just like the others. You can also bring the $299 filing fee to your first appointment or you can pay it later

Why does J*** charge less for bankruptcy than other attorneys?
Efficiency. J*** has many built-in efficiencies that most other attorneys have not, such as direct entry and batch filing. Just doing your entire petition during the first appointment (direct entry) cuts all of “back and forth” time between you and J***’s office that you would have to do if you had filled out a long client information packet. Filing cases in batches allows Jeff to handle several hearings at a time. J*** also answers his own phone as much as possible and promptly responds to your needs, cutting way down on “phone tag.”