Fire Attorney, will I need them/representation later?

[2dogsbroke]

Hi. We have had our 341 meeting with the Trustee and Attorney. The Trustee told us to amend our Schedule J - which we have, and it's been submitted. We are waiting to hear if the repayment amount is now accepted. The problem is that our attorney has informed us that she has spent more time than usual on our case for a typical Chapter 13. So going forward, any more time spent on amendments, and any communications between her and the Trustee will be charged to us at $200 per hour! We are still trying to find the contract, because we do not believe there were stipulations on time or number of changes.

So my question is, if we fire the attorney (hopefully after the Trustee has accepted our plan) - will we need representation, and if so, what for? We dont know what will come next, so any insight would be very much appreciated!

[LaurieM]

Ask the attorney for a copy of the fee agreement which you originally signed.

[2dogsbroke]

I will - she's on vacation right now. I figured, let's hear from the Trustee and take it from there. I haven't been home much to find the contract. I will look tonight, finally home. Just dont understand what I may need an attorney for going forward. even if they agree to not charge us more $ - I dont like the attorney anyway. We can't get a straight answer - she never really answers the questions. I could post the emails, and you'd see, it's amazing to me, she passed the bar!

[HHM]

At the very least, you will need your attorney through to confirmation. The bulk of the work of a chapter 13 case is done between the 341 meeting and the confirmation hearing. (unless it is a very simple chapter 13, which is rare). Generally, the attorney will take the fees from the chapter 13 payment plan that you are making. But if you are barely making any payment or have priority creditors, the attorney can bill you for work performed after the case has been filed.