Three Reasons Why Filing For Bankruptcy Is One Of The Cheapest Legal Battles You May Ever Have
Posted on: 4 May 2016
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Legal fees and appearances in court can be very expensive. However, there are some types of legal cases that are less expensive than others. Bankruptcy is one of these cases. The following three reasons show why filing for bankruptcy is one of the cheapest legal battles you may ever have.
You Do Almost All of Your Own Paralegal Work
Paralegals are usually the professionals that help lawyers collect the documents they need to file and support their cases. However, in a bankruptcy case, all of the information regarding your debts, assets and belongings is collected and provided by you. This typically means that you are doing all of the paralegal's work, so the lawyer is not likely to charge you for this. The only work the lawyer charges you for is his or her filing fees for your bankruptcy hearing and the time he or she spends in court with you on the day of the hearing.
You Can Ask for Legal Fee Support
In many states and counties, courts offer legal fee support. This is provided to claimants who cannot pay the lawyer's fees but still need to proceed with their cases. A court-appointed lawyer may be assigned to you, or you may apply for funds to help pay a lawyer of your own choosing. This drastically reduces the amount that you pay for your bankruptcy and to your bankruptcy attorneys. The forms for these types of legal support can be found on most county courthouse websites, or you can get paper copies from the clerk of courts where you live.
Your Interactions with Your Bankruptcy Lawyer Are Minimal
In other kinds of cases, such as divorce and family law or criminal law, you have a lot more contact with your lawyer. As such, you can expect really high retaining fees, filing fees, paperwork fees and paralegal and lawyer fees. In a bankruptcy case, you generally meet with the lawyer once to discuss your debt load issues, another time to drop off all of your paperwork and supporting documents and make sure your lawyer has everything he or she needs, and then one last time when you appear in bankruptcy court. In very rare cases, you might meet once or twice more if you have creditors that are still trying to recoup their losses and refuse to let go of your case. Then your lawyer may appear to argue a reasonable settlement with the more relentless creditors, but you would still have minimal interactions, and minimal interactions equal minimal legal fees of all kinds. Contact a business, such as Reppe Law Office, for more information.