Lawyers become lawyers, in large part, because they can’t, or don’t want to, do math. Judges are lawyers who got promoted. And therein is the root of the problem with “no look” attorneys fee for consumer bankruptcy cases. Judges don’t understand mathematics. They expect the “law” of averages to result in fair compensation for debtor’s lawyers, relieving judges […]
All Bankruptcy Advice Is Not Created Equal
Peter Mullison proposes in a recent article, that there are five types of people one should talk to about financial problems: Friends, Family Members, Spouses, Religious Counselors, and (thankfully) Bankruptcy Attorneys. If one is undecided about whether bankruptcy is appropriate in their situation, he suggests they should elicit the advice of the above parties. While I […]
California Bankruptcy Lawyer Puts Information Out There – Too Bad He’s Wrong On The Basics
I applaud attorneys who make sound information about bankruptcy available to the public. My only requirement is that their information be true. The truth is income taxes are dischargeable in bankruptcy if 3 reasonably simple conditions are met; debts to the government are generally dischargeable in bankruptcy. Please reread that line, and get that bit […]
Client “wants to think” about appointment
The client with a pending foreclosure sale called and canceled an initial consultation with me last week. He wanted to “think about it” before coming in. If I had been the one taking the call, I would have gone ballistic. (Can we still say that after the Tucson shootings?). Gathering information about bankruptcy does not […]
Bankruptcy lawyer must have otherworldly powers
Jonathan Ginsberg’s piece about the murky language of notices from the bankruptcy court struck a cord. In an attempt to provide notice, they sow confusion. But my pet peeve is the client who calls up and says, literally, “I got this letter from {insert name of court or creditor, or trustee}. What does it mean?” […]
Bankruptcy info by email
My colleague Jonathan Ginsberg writes about his reluctance to provide legal advice or second opinions by email. After all, he points out, it is our command of the law that is our inventory. Give it away and you go out of business. I have a more profound reason to approach questions by strangers with caution: […]
Find The Best Bankruptcy Information Online
Need to understand bankruptcy? Just Google it. No issue is too important or complicated that we doubt we can understand it by reading on the ‘net. The computer has replaced the library as our first response to an unknown. Even my 85 year old mother, a computer novice, reacts to an information vacuum by heading to […]