The search for a good bankruptcy attorney can difficult because there are so many price ranges, personalities, and goals to consider. However some criteria stand out when interviewing different attorneys for the job. Here are some factors to consider.

1. Only Interview Attorneys Who Offer Free Consultations

Almost all reputable bankruptcy attorneys offer free consultations. This is because good bankruptcy attorneys understand your financial constraints when you are looking for debt relief. Also, offices that handle a large volume of bankruptcy cases receive numerous referrals and do not have a shortage of clients. Their good reputation and consistent client base make it so that the attorney can afford to give free consultations. If an attorney is paying for staff and the office expenses based on taking consultation fees, they are likely not taking enough actual cases to pay for their office upkeep. Unless you are looking to hire a specialist or have a complex situation that would require an exceptionally long or difficult consultation, your initial conference to meet with a bankruptcy attorney should be free.

2. Only Interview Bankruptcy Attorney Orlando with a Clean Bar Record

Before you call an attorney for an initial consultation appointment, you should look that lawyer up on the state bar website. Once you are on the bar website, click on “attorney search” and type in the name of the attorney you are considering hiring. If the attorney has a common name, you may have to identify that lawyer based on the city they practice in. Once you have found the attorney you are looking for, you will be able to review their history of practicing law and any records of complaints made against them to the bar. It is relatively rare that good attorneys have much of a record with the bar. The bar history for most attorneys includes how long they have been in practice, any areas of specialty, their office address, contact numbers, and where they attended law school. If the attorney history indicates a complaint against the attorney or past action by the bar against that lawyer this should raise some red flags. Feel free to read through the complaints, the attorney response, and the outcome of the complaint. Use the information you gather from the bar website to make an educated decision on whether this attorney is still someone you want to interview for the job. If you do choose to meet with an attorney who has a complaint, be sure to ask them about the complaint you saw against them.

3. Check Out the Law Firm with the Better Business Bureau (BBB)

Law firms are businesses and, just like any business, law firms can be evaluated and monitored by your local BBB. A quick check on the local BBB website will assure you that the law firm has a good reputation with the local community. Attorneys that have worked had to achieve a high rating from the BBB will work had to protect that rating by providing good customer service and a quality product. BBB websites often have client review sections where you can read about other client experiences with the law firm you are interviewing.

4. Make Sure Your Bankruptcy Attorney Has Experience

With the current economic decline, many lawyers are now seeking bankruptcy practice as a booming area of law and attempting to take cases in this field. When you file for bankruptcy, you are putting all of your assets –everything you own- in the hands of the court. Good bankruptcy attorneys know how to protect your assets and can provide you with advice on how to keep all of your assets while simply having your debts wiped out. You do not want everything that you own in the hands of a novice. When you are considering bankruptcy relief, it is important to have an attorney that has dealt with assets similar to yours before. An active bankruptcy attorney should have filed hundreds of cases in the past. Make sure to ask the attorneys you interview how long they have been practicing bankruptcy law, how many total cases they have taken, how many cases they file each month, and their success rate in getting client debts discharged. If you are interested in knowing the bankruptcy case volume for an attorney before you interview them, you can find out this information at your local bankruptcy court. Each bankruptcy court has public court clerk office, and most clerks’ offices will have a computer available to the public where you can review all cases filed with the court for free. The PACER search engine used nationally by the federal courts also allows you to search by attorney name and view all cases filed by an attorney in your local area. If you request help, a clerk will likely assist you in using the search engine. The important thing to bear in mind when looking at attorney experience is that you are paying for a professional to do a competent job in representing your case to the court. You are not paying for someone to learn how to do their job on your dime.

5. Make Sure Your Written Price Quote is Reasonable and Appropriate

All bankruptcy attorneys are required to provide their clients with written fee agreements so there should never be any questions as to the cost of legal fees in a bankruptcy case. The price of a case will always depend on complexity. For example, clients running their own business should expect to pay higher bankruptcy fees then clients receiving W-2 salaries. This is because business cases require much more reporting to the court and usually the attorney must assemble not only the client’s financial info, but all the financial history of the business as well. The average price range for chapter 7 cases in Northern California is roughly $1500-3000. Chapter 13 cases for clients that have W-2 salaried jobs should expect to pay approximately $3500, and business owners should expect fees of around $5000 for their case. Many attorneys will offer fees lower than the averages mentioned here. Understandably, bankruptcy clients are often searching for a low price, but please consider these exceptionally low prices to be a red flag. Bankruptcy prices are normally based on the cost of running an active and productive law firm. If a bankruptcy attorney can give you an extremely low price, it may be because they have no staff or minimal overhead. While low prices sound good in theory, how difficult is it to get in touch with an attorney who has no staff and does everything themselves? Are they doing so few cases that they cannot afford staff? Be sure to think critically about prices that seem too good to be true.

6. Hire Someone You Feel Comfortable with and Who You Feel Comfortable Having Them Represent You

Going through a bankruptcy is often one of the most stressful times in a person’s life. Your bankruptcy attorney should take the time to explain all aspects of the case to you. If at the initial interview you feel that the attorney is rushing, being abrasive, or you generally do not like them, you will likely have that feeling throughout the entire case. Also, your attorney is your voice at court and your representative to all of your creditors. You need to feel confident that the person you hire is someone that you can trust with your assets, your time and your interests. You will spend a lot of money on a bankruptcy attorney, and you deserve respect, compassion and competence from the person you hire.