My attorney decided he doesn't want to take my case!

[swampwiz]

I called my attorney to ask about buying a home and the first time homebuyer tax credit - i.e., whether it would be part of the BK estate, and whether if it would be done in 2009 or 2010, would there be any difference. He seemed to get exasperated and said that with me wanting to "live on the edge" with buying a home, that he did not feel comfortable taking my case. (Actually, I appeared rather nervous when I first met with him because of all the scary talk I had received here - as I mentioned that was worried about the AP's that forum members here were scaring me with.)

So I decided to start calling a bunch of BK attorneys, and find one that would be aggressive with my case, and fight for the best deal I could legally get. I called one that seemed to not want my business because of the strange situation with my official domicile (i.e., being officially disaster displaced homeless, owning a homesite {that will be sold soon} with legal domicile established in one district, will be buying a home in another district, spending time sleeping over the last 6 months in other districts, etc.)

Then I called someone in the district of my current domicile (i.e., where that homesite and my driver's license and car and voter's registration is), and we had a great conversation (he said that I could buy an exempt asset with my cash the day before filing with no problem - something my original attorney said I needed to wait 90 days to make it look "good".) I asked about the question of insolvency, of taking cash advances while not having an income (although reasonably expecting to get back to having such an income), and he said that was no problem. I even asked him about the original question of the tax credit, and while he said that he couldn't guarantee that a trustee would not look at a future tax credit, in all probability, with the BK filing on Jan 5, 2010, the trustee would only look at the 2009 return. So I am going to hire this guy; he is going to send me a big questionnaire, and then we are going to sit still until Jan 5 to file (the home will be bought on Jan 4. )

[drowningNdebt]

OH NO not again

Maybe your attorney decided against your case because of your intent to defraud the US BK Court system

[kenshirley]

Yes, there are attorneys out there that if they get the feeling you are abusing the system will dump you like a hot rock.
I am not saying you are but I think he thinks you are.

[aljohnson007]

Looks like you are fishing in a muddy pond. Be careful of what you might catch.

[2manybills]

IActually, I appeared rather nervous when I first met with him because of all the scary talk I had received here - as I mentioned that was worried about the AP's that forum members here were scaring me with.

I must have missed something here. This site is full of folks that support and not scare people. I think something does not add up here with every post I see!

[kenshirley]

Sometimes the facts just scare you.
Maybe that is what they were referring to.

[AngelinaCat]

I called my attorney to ask about buying a home and the first time homebuyer tax credit....... He seemed to get exasperated and said that with me wanting to "live on the edge" with buying a home, that he did not feel comfortable taking my case. (Actually, I appeared rather nervous when I first met with him because of all the scary talk I had received here - as I mentioned that was worried about the AP's that forum members here were scaring me with.)

EXCUSE ME!!!!!??? You are now accusing the Forum members of giving YOU bad advice, when in fact YOU came here seeking ways to GAME THE SYSTEM?????

You go and wash your lying mouth out with soap, and APOLOGIZE!!!!

[swampwiz]

EXCUSE ME!!!!!??? You are now accusing the Forum members of giving YOU bad advice, when in fact YOU came here seeking ways to GAME THE SYSTEM?????

You go and wash your lying mouth out with soap, and APOLOGIZE!!!!

No, I am not accusing the forum members of giving bad advice - just scary possibilities. Yes, I am trying to game the system, but *legally*. This is no different then someone who does not have health insurance and figures on waiting until there would be a health problem to get insurance (this would presume a system in which there would be no pre-existing condition penalty.) Would that guy be "gaming" the system? Certainly? Would he be guilty of fraud? Certainly not.

[mami2four]

Wow, I'm surprised you were able to talk to different attorneys about your case over the phone when I was shopping around I had to come in for an appt with all of them

[swampwiz]

Sometimes the facts just scare you.
Maybe that is what they were referring to.

Well, I'm beginning to think that my old attorney is somewhat of a piker, and scared of doing anything that might look suspicious in any way, and not knowing that it is perfectly fine for someone to convert cash into an exempt asset right before BK.

This came as a bit of a shock since I had told him that I was going to buy a home right before the BK, or at least wait a few months after buying the home to file BK. I simply asked him about the situation about the tax credit being in one year or the other, and how that would affect the proceedings. It's almost as if he didn't want to think about how things would work. That to me is a piker, even at $300/hr. My new guy was happy to delve into the what-ifs (although he did say that he did not know if the trustee could demand the tax credit that would be forthcoming a year later.)

Come to think of it, perhaps I could play a game of chicken with the trustee, saying that unless we could come up with a mutually agreed upon settlement concerning the tax credit, that I would just not take the credit (there is no law that says that someone has to take a credit.) Perhaps I could donate $1K into the BK estate for the agreement that I would be free to take it in the future.

[2manybills]

No, I am not accusing the forum members of giving bad advice - just scary possibilities. Yes, I am trying to game the system, but *legally*. This is no different then someone who does not have health insurance and figures on waiting until there would be a health problem to get insurance (this would presume a system in which there would be no pre-existing condition penalty.) Would that guy be "gaming" the system? Certainly? Would he be guilty of fraud? Certainly not.

If it walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it's a duck! Most folks are not "gaming" the system, but rather seeking a fresh start.

[backtoschool]

I would try a couple more lawyers and see if there is anyone else that is willing to take your case.

Any lawyer that is saying, "easy, no problem" to your situation, either doesn't understand bankruptcy law, or is just saying anything to take your money. Be careful that this lawyer won't disappear when all the AP's and US Trustee problems crop up.

[swampwiz]

Wow, I'm surprised you were able to talk to different attorneys about your case over the phone when I was shopping around I had to come in for an appt with all of them

Yes, most attorneys wanted that in face appointment. This guy seems to operate on the notion that he will just give a big questionnaire, and from that he will get all the pertinent data that he needs to proceed. When I had talked to my original attorney, he was busy and couldn't talk to me much, so we had a short sit down meeting where he asked about my debts and assets, etc. He said it seemed to be an easy case. I guess that part about buying a home made it too difficult for him. But geez, taking advantage of a big fat exemption like the home is very important part of the properly proceeding. I liked it when my new attorney made a point of telling me to try to zero out my checking account on any kind of essential purchase. That's the kind of tenacity I like in my legal counsel.

[LimpDisc]

"I asked about the question of insolvency, of taking cash advances while not having an income (although reasonably expecting to get back to having such an income), and he said that was no problem"

So you plan on taking cash advances up until the day you file? If that's the advice this attorney is giving you, it's beyond aggressive!

I'd be willing to bet that when the TT sees the lump sum of cash being used the day before filing it will raise a red flag. The last thing I want is the TT looking at my case with a microscope.

What does the attorney have to lose by being very aggressive? If you get a bunch of AP's he gets more money or if you get dismissed he still gets paid.

Good Luck to you living on the edge!

[swampwiz]

I would try a couple more lawyers and see if there is anyone else that is willing to take your case.

Any lawyer that is saying, "easy, no problem" to your situation, either doesn't understand bankruptcy law, or is just saying anything to take your money. Be careful that this lawyer won't disappear when all the AP's and US Trustee problems crop up.

Hmm, so you are saying an unknowledgeable attorney could pretend he knows something just to reel me in? I think in this case, he seemed to be on top of the facts, and had the ability to say my options were more than what he actually said, so I think he's legit. I went out of way to discuss how I took money in cash advances which basically got plowed into the stock market (of course, as I have said all along, I actually made money on that), and detailed all the cash advances I had taken after that to live on and stay current on the debts. And he actually backed off a bit from the stance of my original, careful attorney on the home exemption in real terms (i.e., the real threshold amount that would incur the trustee demanding cash, as opposed to the statutory amount.)