How did you find your attorney?

[HHM]

This might be a more useful thread than those threads asking for specific attorney recommendations (which is against forum rules) or those pointless threads about how much a person paid for their attorney.

Please describe the process you used to find your attorney. How did you actually find the attorney you used. What resources did you use.

For example, did you use a google search, yellow pages, referral from friend or family, some sort of attorney referral service.

How many consults did you go on before hiring? What ultimately led you to choose the attorney you used?

If you are already finished with your BK, were you satisfied with your attorney's service; looking back, would you have done something different in your search?

[nokia123]

i was referred by two people to the attorney i have now, but before then i had 4 consults.

[CanBreathe]

I called a friend who worked for a law office and talked to her attorney. He didn't practice BK law but gave me the name of someone who did. I spoke with him, of course Googled everything I could on him, and was very happy.

[jdcat]

I went to our local bk courts website and looked through all the attorney names appearing for the 341's. I then made appointments to interview with the attorneys that I felt didn't show up in court to often (mill) or to little (either new or not very active in bk).

[mtngirl47]

I asked for names from some folks I knew who had filed...then called my lawyer that I use for my business for recommendations. I had 6 names and could only get consult appointments with two in a timely fashion. The others were booked up for several months....business must be brisk!

The two consults were via phone--after faxing them pre-appointment forms they had requested. I went with the attorney who understood our complicated business/personal financial situation. He was personable and patient with my questions.

Our 341 is in a couple of days and I'm pleased so far...he kept our mortgage out of the trustee payment ($4788 per month which would equal $479 per month trustee fee). Plus he knows what the trustee is looking at/for and I feel like he's prepared. I called our paralegal today to see if there was any more documentation required for the meeting and she said, "Like what? We have everything and the trustee has what he needs. Just bring your ID & SS card." Nice.

[mamaluv]

I didn't know anyone that had filed BK so I couldn't get a referral from anyone. So I got the phone book and called a few of the attorneys with ads and picked the best of the bunch. Worked out well, however I had a straightforward BK.

[lrprn]

My sister and her husband ran their own business and had a lawyer friend who helped them with business legalities. I asked her to ask him for a bk lawyer recommendation. He gave her the name of a Ch 7 bk lawyer. Since we were going to file a Ch 13, I asked the Ch 7 bk lawyer for a recommendation. Voila! He told us about our lawyer.

We also interviewed four other experienced bk lawyers in our area as well that I found after doing extensive and detailed internet research.

After all five interviews were done, we were both convinced that our lawyer, the lawyer recommended by the Ch 7 lawyer, was the one for us. Four years later, we remain convinced we found the very best lawyer for our case!

[Exployer1234]

My director at work referred me to my attorney. I normally would not suggest getting work involved with your personal money problems, but it is kinda hard to hide any money problems when you get a summons and wage garnishment served at work. Lucky for me my director is very understanding. I have felt at ease with my lawyer and do not feel bad about having to file. It has made this process a little easier to deal with.

[espo1357]

Hyatt Legal Group covered me from my company benefits (I pay about 15 bucks/month for it), and I found an attorney through them.

Group legal is a good move.

the guy is the stone cold nuts. professional. smart. honest.

[Universal]

I had a list of local bk atty.'s. I knew that I didn't want to go to a 'puppy mill' and wanted someone with a good reputation and who would take an interest in our personal situation. I went for the consult and was satisfied.

[LadyInTheRed]

The first attorney I met with was a referral from a commercial BK attorney I know. She was opening her own office after 5 years in BK and didn't have much Chap 13 experience. I even had to correct her on a couple of things. I liked her and might have hired her for Chap 7, but not a 13.

I then searched the CA State Bar website for certified BK specialists. There were only 2 or 3 in my area. I had already seen the website of one and I got a good feeling about him. So, I met with him. He has 25 years of experience, has worked a lot with the local Chap 13 trustee and spent close to 2 hours with me during the free consult. I actually enjoyed the meeting and was surprised when I realized how long I had been there. He knew his stuff, and had looked through the spreadsheet I sent him ahead of time. He was very relaxed and casual and his office is in a business district about a mile from my house instead in downtown high rise. His wife is his paralegal and has been with him almost his entire career and there is one other staff member. They are experienced and seemed to be good, down-to-earth people. So, I decided to stop interviewing and hired them. So far so good. My 341 is July 8th.

[mikeinsurpri]

I googled bankruptcy lawyers in Phoenix and asked a few friends that went through it for the names of the lawyers they used. Then did research on the few that I thought were good. I found out that there is a lot of research to do to see if they are rated by Martindale or AVVO, state bar, etc. Then I found that a few of them have blogs or very good websites that give a lot of info. After that I narrowed my choices down to three, made appointments and retained the one that I felt the most comfortable with. During my appointments, two of the lawyers I made appointments with didn't even meet with me, I met with their assistant or "non-lawyer" type. The lawyer I ended up using writes this blog and has a wealth of information that I read through. This helped me prepare for the initial appointments and also helped me when I had questions.

[url removed]

[souprebel]

Hi! I'm new here.

I've been reading for a few days and just now posting.

Does anyone know a good BK Lawyer in Richmond Virginia that they recommend? Mine will be a Personal Ch7 and I have a failed Small Business that was Incorporated.

Thank you!

[ylime]

I used google at first to start the list of potentials. Then I went to the Bar Association website for my state and did searches by city (I was not interested in having to drive downtown for meetings).

I did lots of online research and eventually came up with a short list of 5 attorneys. I'm picky when it comes to who I do business with. No website - No business from me. (It's the 21st century people!)

I set up consultations with each one, and eventually found one I could trust.

[souprebel]

Thank you for the reply.

Google is great for sure...