Credit Cards and Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy Attorney Payment

When it comes to paying a bankruptcy lawyer, there are usually few options. Most attorneys will demand an up front fee. But there are some bankruptcy lawyers who will accept payments spread over the several months it will take for your case to wind it’s way through the bankruptcy process.

This really is a good marketing idea for the attorney. He knows that people who are facing bankruptcy have little or no spare cash. He also knows that once a client files for a chapter 7 bankruptcy he is barred from doing it again for six years. Add to this the fact that the client will soon be free of most or all of his debts, and taking everything into consideration you’re dealing with someone who’s probably a pretty good credit risk.

Before you can file for bankruptcy protection, you must satisfy a residency requirement that varies from place to place. Check with your attorney to see if you qualify where you now live. If you’ve lived in the same neighborhood for several years you probably won’t have to worry about this little technicality.

But if you are tempted to move to another state, you’ll have to wait awhile before you’ll be able to file there. And, as you’ll see, there can be some very large incentives for filing bankruptcy in another state.

Unfortunately the courts aren’t fools. Lately they’ve begun to disallow bankruptcy filings if the filer can’t offer an explanation as to why they made the move. Moving just to take advantage of liberal bankruptcy exemptions - isn’t good enough. If you decide to “shop around” for the friendliest state, you should be able to come up with a logical and compelling justification for your move (a sick relative, a higher paying new job, marriage to a local would probably work)

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