What is the law firm experience you are looking for? Choosing an attorney is similar to choosing any other professional, except unlike a medical professional, who a patient may see for 15 minutes once a year (or less), an attorney client relationship is often long-term one that not only is legally protected, but may span weeks, months or year. The relationship will certainly be crucial to a client’s financial well-being.
Attorney Contact
Plenty of law firms advertise their incredible quantity of bankruptcy filings. While business and legal experience is crucial, we believe quantity of experience should be combined with quality representation.
At high volume “mill” law firms, your consultation will likely be conducted a paralegal or legal assistant, who will also draft your petition and paperwork. Although you may be able to meet your attorney briefly, your calls will otherwise be directed to support staff. At your court hearing, you will likely assigned to an attorney paid by the day (per diem counsel) who will call all of his or her clients for that day from a list to introduce him or herself and will quickly look over his or her notes for your case. Subsequent questions will be answered by a paralegal or legal assistant unless something has gone awry and caused a real problem, in which case you may be able to get through to an attorney.
Cost
Bankruptcy retainer fees are typically flat fees. While this fee (depending on what type of bankruptcy filing is necessary) can be anywhere from $1,000-$5,000 (and more for very complex matters), every case is different–every client is different.
- A firm that charges every client the same fee are overcharging clients with very simple cases, and must therefore figure out a way to spend as little time as possible on clients with very complex cases.
- A firm that advertises a too-good-to-be-true or one-size-fits-all fee either do not see clients as individuals with unique sets of challenges and needs or require a business model that must drive clients in and out of the firm with the primary goal of cost-efficiency. We are different by design:
Our goals
Our fees may not be the cheapest in every case (though we do take on pro bono cases) and we do not seek an astronomical quantity of cases that requires most work to be conducted by support staff. Rather, we seek intricate, difficult cases that often require creative solutions. Clients contact is preferred, rather than avoided–this is our business and our clients are people who want to be respected as partners rather than a fee.
Every client must determine the type of firm that suits their particular needs. Call us today to set up an appointment to sit down to discuss how we may be able to represent your interests!