FEES AND COSTS FOR FILING BANKRUPTCY

1.    Filing Fees. As of April 9, 2006, the filing fee for Chapter 7 is $299. The filing fee for Chapter 13 is $274.
   
   
2.    Debtor Education Classes. We go through Greenpath and they charge $95 for a single person and $110 for a joint filing between a husband and a wife.
   
   
3.    Credit Report. We insist all clients obtain a credit report through us. We work with CreditInfonet to obtain a tri-merged credit report. We cannot guarantee that every creditor you owe reports to a Credit Reporting Agency, but if they do, we will have them listed. We also perform an “asset check” through a reputable service. The cost is $51 for a single person and $61 for a joint filing.
   
   
4.    Attorney Fees. These vary from state to state and it will depend on the complexity of your case, the level of work involved and your personal situation. Our initial consultation is FREE, of course. Typically, I advise my clients that attorney fees in Chapter 7 will likely be between $800 and $1,500. If we can do it for less, we are happy to do so. Chapter 13 costs more. Remember that we have to service your case for three to five years. The good news is that most of the attorney fees are paid from the Chapter 13 plan. In other words, the money you pay to the Chapter 13 Trustee, he will turn around and pay some of that money back to us. The court must approve those fees, of course.

            *** WARNING *** I have to be honest: since the change in the law, many lawyers who used to file bankruptcy are no longer practicing in this area of the law. That may be wise: the lawyers at our firm have gone to many seminars to learn the new law. Jim Wherry has spoken at several seminars, across the country. We constantly review the new decisions coming from bankruptcy courts across the nation to determine what is going on that may affect you.

            Unfortunately, several attorneys in our area have not kept up with the new law, but they have kept on filing. I am sorry to say that their ineptness has gotten their clients’ cases dismissed, in several instances. Regardless of who you hire, PLEASE hire someone who knows what they are doing and has taken the time to learn and thoroughly understand this complicated area of the law. Our lawyers file many cases and we try very hard to keep up on the new laws. Experience and education are the hallmark of our work.