341 no lawyer

[curtb07]

went to our 341 yesterday..needed to be there for 1:30 got there at 12:30 in worcester. 1:15 rolls around and no sign of attorney,everbody else's attorney's start rolling in.find out that they are back up and we don't get to be seen untill 3:00 ..calls our name we tell him that our attorney is not there and he says they need to be but he will work with us. and if at any point we dont feel comfortable he will stop and reschuedle. so he starts asking questions going good then show's us our means test and it has 0 all over it .must have been a glitch with computer or something, then doesnt have 2008 tax returns, and no paystubs for last 6 months, my attorney never sent those documents over,he said they have to be there 7 days prior to the meeting. told me i have 20 days to get the information to him or he will dismiss,if he gets it we will be alright, leave meeting call attorney and her voicemail says her daughter is having surgery and she will be back in the office july 30...my question is what is my right to a refund of money or discounted rate. i mean i could have filied the paper work and looked like a dick in the meeting by myself because thats what happened and could have saved 3 g's

[liz417]

Wow, never heard this one! I would be pissed! This attorney sounds disorganized and rude, what she couldn't have picked up a phone and called her clients?? The 341 is stressful enough for a person!

I would request that my $$ be returned in full or you will report her to the State Bar (still do AFTER she refunds the $$). I wouldn't trust her will my case after this (and tell her that!).

Good Luck!

[whipster1]

Send those things directly to the trustee. Eff your atty they did nothing for you except get your $$$.

[2manybills]

How far in advance do you usually hear if the trustee wants anything else?

[music12]

unbelievable story curtb07!!!

before i got to what you said about her voicemail, it sounded to me like this attorney realized how sloppy her paperwork was and was too afraid to show up and face the music. i don't know if i believe that voicemail. even if it is true her daughter is having surgery, if she had time to leave that voicemail, then she had time to call you and/or the trustee to tell you she'd be away. she had an obligation to appear and even if she had good reason not to, she had to advise SOMEONE that she is gone. irresponsible doesn't begin to describe it.

[aces67]

That's crazy! You should request a refund and file a complaint with your state bar.

[JRScott]

Certainly she should have arranged at the least another lawyer to sit with you. It can be stressful and not knowing the condition of her daughter its hard to say her motivation.

You would be within your rights to ask for some sort of refund.

I'd get everything together the trustee asked for and send or take it to their office personally. You'll then need to file an amended means test that has the proper numbers. Considering the special case here you could also record the message on the lawyers phone and take it to the trustee or ask them to call and verify that is what happened. You might then could ask for a rescheduled 341, but if you can you could take it into your own hands.

Very poor business from this lawyer. Still if the rest of the case is filled out correctly not sure I'd ask for a full refund.

[MrSmithster]

i got to my 341 a few hours early and noticed a few lawyers introducing themselves to people and mentioning that the lawyer they hired couldnt make it and they were filling in. no excuse for someone not being there, and then the paperwork errors on top. hope things improve for you

[curtb07]

the lawyer with the daugther in the hospital freaked out when she found out the other lawyer never showed up ..and now she is treatning the other lawyer with legal action and there not speaking... talked to the 2 lawyers and they are playing the blame game so now they are in a fight ...it's like i have 1 lawyer watching another lawyer.. i just need things to go smooth could care less about the drama shit.....

[jadams]

Who was your trustee in Worcester?

When I was there my trustee was discussing a continued case for a similar issue where the lawyer had an emergency and didn't show up.

He was very explicit that he saw the filer had done everything right and he would do everything he could to ensure that the consequences resided with the lawyer and did not risk screwing up the filing (beyond the continuation to a second 341 meeting).

It doesn't make up for what happened, but even many of us with a lawyer that did show up left the 341 meeting wondering what the heck we paid the lawyer for.

I hope once you get that paperwork off things will be smooth sailing from then on.

[JRScott]

the lawyer with the daugther in the hospital freaked out when she found out the other lawyer never showed up ..and now she is treatning the other lawyer with legal action and there not speaking... talked to the 2 lawyers and they are playing the blame game so now they are in a fight ...it's like i have 1 lawyer watching another lawyer.. i just need things to go smooth could care less about the drama shit.....

Well I'm glad you heard back at least.

Sorry about the mess, hope it all smooths out for you.

[MrSmithster]

i filed Pro Se and i agree, i was thinking, what the heck did these people pay a lawyer for? the only problems i saw at my 341 were the people with lawyers, all us Pro Se filers went back to back(I was 2nd to last)with no problems at all.

[kenshirley]

Our attorney did not send those things either.
In fact, in the trustee's letter, he said we had to supply them, not the attorney, directly to the trustee.I think there was a miscommunication somewhere.
As far as him not showing up, get some money back from the clown or file a charge against him with the state bar.

[kenshirley]

i filed Pro Se and i agree, i was thinking, what the heck did these people pay a lawyer for? the only problems i saw at my 341 were the people with lawyers, all us Pro Se filers went back to back(I was 2nd to last)with no problems at all.

Not favoring attorneys as I don't like them and I have had lots of experience with them in my life.
But I saw the opposite at our 341. The people that had problems filed themselves and had paperwork problems.