I understand why people seek help on how to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy without an attorney. Money is tight. You don’t think you can afford to hire a lawyer. While a person has an absolute right to represent himself or herself in court including bankruptcy proceedings, that doesn’t mean you have to. A person also has the absolute right to either perform root canal treatment or remove the appendix, neither of which is a good idea.
There is a lot of financial information that needs to be included in the Petition including any interest in real estate, personal property of any type or type, all of your creditors, your financial history over the last few years and then there is the Proficiency Test. Figuring out how to do this has baffled bankruptcy judges across the country since 2005.
Don’t forget you have to free up all your property or you will lose it. Did you know that next year’s tax refunds need to be registered and released? Not? You just lost your refund. Think there might be other things you don’t know? Of course there is.
Well, even if that were all true, you still can’t afford a lawyer. You see a sign on the side of the road or post on Craigslist for a guy who can help you prepare for your bankruptcy case. Inexpensive. Very cheap. Maybe $200.00. He is a bankruptcy petitioner. You give him all the information he asks for, sign the paperwork he tells you, and file his case. The petitioner cannot go to court with you. He can’t even give you legal advice. He is not a lawyer and if he did, he would be practicing law without a license.
The case is filed and you get your notice to appear in court. You show up and a Chapter 7 Guardian is there to ask you questions. The trustee also wants to know why you didn’t submit certain information before the trial. The Trustee wants to know why you haven’t registered all of your properties and why your Proficiency Test was filled out incorrectly. You keep saying bankruptcy petitioners did it. You don’t really understand. So late. What you don’t know may actually be a problem. More bad news. If your case is really messed up, you have no right to ignore it and start over. If the Trustee starts to seize property that isn’t properly registered and excluded, your troubles have just begun.
And when the Chapter 7 Trustees finished, the Department of Justice sent lawyers to the trial to find out more about this bankruptcy petitioner. Why? Because we have a problem with people taking advantage of people with debt. You need help and they sell it to you cheaply. You get what you pay for. Most of these people are snake oil sellers looking for a quick buck. Take my word for it, they don’t understand. Even people with fancy websites don’t know what they’re doing. I have corrected their mistakes more than once.
To learn more about bankruptcy, please take a moment to visit my website at: Downriver Bankruptcy.