Chapter 7-POA filed, Lawyer threatening to "fire" us?

[dontburnthep]

We are in the middle of a chapter 7 filing. The UST filed a statement of POA, but has not filed a motion to dismiss yet, so we don't know the actual reasons that he wants to dismiss. (Although we suspect it is that we filed using the car ownership deduction on our means test and then lost the deduction mid filing due to Ransom.) In a phone conversation with our attorney yesterday, I said that we wouldn't know if we wanted to convert until we saw the motion to dismiss reasons and had some idea of what a 13 payment would be. Attorney refuses to address payment possibilities until the motion is filed. Today we got a letter from the attorney stating that we had one week to make a decision. The motion to dismiss hasn't even been filed yet and he wants us to commit to a conversion to 13! Is this normal?

[scorpion35]

We are in the middle of a chapter 7 filing. The UST filed a statement of POA, but has not filed a motion to dismiss yet, so we don't know the actual reasons that he wants to dismiss. (Although we suspect it is that we filed using the car ownership deduction on our means test and then lost the deduction mid filing due to Ransom.) In a phone conversation with our attorney yesterday, I said that we wouldn't know if we wanted to convert until we saw the motion to dismiss reasons and had some idea of what a 13 payment would be. Attorney refuses to address payment possibilities until the motion is filed. Today we got a letter from the attorney stating that we had one week to make a decision. The motion to dismiss hasn't even been filed yet and he wants us to commit to a conversion to 13! Is this normal?

u have a BAD attorney that will not fight for u
he gets more ,money in a chapter 13

[despritfreya]

IMHO your attorney is putting the cart before the horse. Making the decision to convert or drop out needs to be based upon the UST's motives. If the bright line decision in Ransom is the reason, then your filing is presumed abusive but that does not necessarily mean you cannot overcome the presumption. The UST may simply be looking at whether or not the specifics of the case (as filed) show that you could overcome the presumption. The UST has 30 days from the filing of the POA to file a Motion to Dismiss. As a result I would be telling my client to sit tight and wait to see what happens.

Now, as a practical matter, the fees you paid to your attorney most likely do not cover fighting a Motion to Dismiss. In addition, the retainer you signed was for a Chapter 7, not a Chapter 13. If satisfactory arrangements for the additional representation are not made, your attorney can file a Motion to Withdraw from the case since the case progressed beyond the representation contracted for.

Des.

[dontburnthep]

So he's looking for a commitment to the 13 before he does any work, including fighting a motion to dismiss? Am I understanding correctly?

It probably would have made more sense for him to just say that instead of sending us a threatening letter. He didn't ask for arrangements or explain anything about extra representation. Just said we had a week to decide whether we wanted to convert or dismiss. We would happily pay additional funds for additional representation to get us through the motion to dismiss, but not if it means we are obligated to continue the conversion if it comes to that.

This is not the first indication that he's a bad attorney, but it's certainly the most glaring one.

[shark66]

Today we got a letter from the attorney stating that we had one week to make a decision. The motion to dismiss hasn't even been filed yet and he wants us to commit to a conversion to 13! Is this normal?

Absolutely not normal. Not to mention ethical - at least in my opinion.

Sit tight and see whether the UST files the said motion in the first place.

Do not - by any means - allow yourself to be pushed into Ch. 13 without taking the time to weigh your options and prepare properly...for a completely different ball game than originally intended with a Ch. 7...

No one - not UST, not any judge, and definitely not the attorney that is supposed to have your best interest as his top priority - can force you to convert to Ch 13. Period.

The best of luck to you.

[dontburnthep]

I can't decide how I want to respond. Of course I want him to fight the motion to dismiss, if filed, even if he requires additional compensation, but I don't want to commit myself to a 13.

His actual wording was,

"Please advise me, with a week, as to whether you are intend to allow your Chapter 7 case to be dismissed once a Motion to Dismiss is filed by the Bankruptcy Administrator.

If, on the other hand, you intend to convert your case to a Chapter 13 case, then I promptly need the information that I have previously requested."

(Grammar errors are his- sigh.)

The information that he is referring to are future medical and dental numbers, as well as orthodontic estimates. Wouldn't he need that information whether we fought the motion to dismiss in a 7 or converted to a 13? Sounds like he thinks the 7 has no chance, and the motion hasn't even been filed yet!

[debrouillant]

I filed prose earlier this week mostly because the two lawyers I consulted with pre-filing seemed dumber than a bag of rocks, and not at all interested in my case, just interested in their fee. Personally, I find grammatical errors repulsive, because it shows a clear lack of interest in the situation at hand. Your attorney doesn't seem to care much about your case. It's sad.

[shark66]

I can't decide how I want to respond. Of course I want him to fight the motion to dismiss, if filed, even if he requires additional compensation, but I don't want to commit myself to a 13.

If I were in your spot, my response would go along these lines:

" Dear Mr. xxxxxxx

Thank you for your letter dated xx/xx/xxxx

At this moment we have no interest in having our case converted to Ch. 13

We would, however, be interested in having you fight the Motion To Dismiss on our behalf, if and when one is filed by the Bankruptcy Administrator. Please advise what additional documentation and/or expense would be required for this course of action.

Yours truly,

dontburnthep"

I'm tired and not feeling well at the moment so I'm less literate than my usual self, but am certain that you get the general idea. Polite but to the point, and leaves very little room for him to wiggle...

My $0.02 only...

Good luck.

[dontburnthep]

Thank you

[debee]

Let it get dismissed, buy two cars, put your kids in daycare and refile with a competent attorney.

[dontburnthep]

Thank you, everyone. I feel like I could have filed myself with better success. I actually did file a successful chapter 7 pro se for my ex husband, but it was pre-2005 and with the new laws, I got scared, didn't ask the right questions, and let my lawyer make poor decisions for me. There's a lesson to be learned here.