CHOOSING A HOUSTON BANKRUPTCY ATTORNEY
I’m J. Thomas Black, Attorney at Law. I’m Board Certified in Consumer Bankruptcy Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. This is my information message about Choosing a Bankruptcy Attorney.
It can be very difficult to choose an attorney for help with a legal problem, particularly such a scary legal procedure as bankruptcy. Many of my comments here will apply to hiring a lawyer generally, but I’m specifically talking about hiring a Houston bankruptcy lawyer, also known as a get out of debt lawyer in Houston to handle your personal or small business bankruptcy.
Legal problems can be very intimidating to people, and the idea that they have to pick the right professional to help them with their problem can cause a great deal of stress and anxiety. I’ve prepared this information message to help you in making this very important decision.
Handling your own bankruptcy case without a lawyer. Although it is possible to file a bankruptcy case without a lawyer, I don’t recommend it. I say that, not just because I am a bankruptcy lawyer, but because one mistake, and you can cost yourself much more than the cost of the lawyer. I’ve had people come to me after they’ve “goofed up” their own cases, and sometimes it can be fixed, sometimes it can’t.
Moreover, representing yourself in a bankruptcy is like doing your own dental work, or doing surgery on yourself. Even lawyers hire lawyers to handle their personal bankruptcy, and I have represented many lawyers in bankruptcy cases. Abe Lincoln said that one who represents himself has a fool for a client.
In addition, a lawyer that regularly practices in the bankruptcy courts is familiar with the local rules of court, the local bankruptcy trustees and their procedures and staff, and the local bankruptcy judges and their staff. A competent, knowledgeable bankruptcy lawyer can make any legal procedure much less stressful, and seek to guide your case through the system as smoothly as possible.
Beware of hiring a typing service, an “independent paralegal,” or other non-lawyers that say they’ll type up your papers and help you through bankruptcy. There’s a lot more to it than typing a few papers, and these people aren’t legally permitted to give you legal advice or appear in court or at a meeting of creditors with you. And there’s a reason for that; they don’t have the legal training or experience to even recognize problems that could harm your case, much less be familiar with the nuances of a particular bankruptcy judge or trustee.
Not only that, but as a practical matter, non-lawyer typing services or paralegals will charge you (illegally, I might add) as much or more than a lawyer would charge you, and the lawyer would accompany you to the creditors meeting and if necessary to court, whereas a non-lawyer is never allowed to represent you in court or at a meeting of creditors.
Choosing A Houston Bankruptcy Attorney
Finding the Right Get Out of Debt Lawyer in Houston
The first step in choosing a lawyer is to make sure your lawyer is a lawyer. I know it sounds silly, but if it were me, I would go to the Texas State Bar Web Site at State Bar of Texas Web Site or call the State Bar of Texas at 1-800-204-2222 and ask for membership. If you’re in another state, of course, contact that state’s bar association and inquire.
Check to see if the lawyer you’re thinking about hiring is currently licensed to practice law. It’s amazing to me how many individuals either masquerade themselves as lawyers, or were at one time properly licensed lawyers, but have been disbarred or suspended from the practice of law, and they are continuing to practice as if nothing had happened.
While you are checking on the lawyer with the State Bar, see if the lawyer has a Disciplinary History. If a lawyer has been publicly disciplined by the Bar for ethical violations, that information is available. A lawyer may have been publicly reprimanded, suspended from practice, or even disbarred for bad conduct. If the lawyer has a history of this, you may not want to use that particular lawyer.
Now, the best way to choose any professional is to get a referral from a friend or relative, someone who has used that professional’s services before. I get many referrals that way, from other lawyers, and one friend or relative referring another to me. But not everyone wants to talk about the fact that they had to file bankruptcy, so it may be difficult for you to get a personal referral to a bankruptcy lawyer.
If it’s not possible to get a referral, I recommend that you choose a lawyer from the internet or through the Yellow Pages and make an appointment.
Very important: When you go to meet with a bankruptcy lawyer in Houston, insist on meeting with the lawyer personally. If you meet with a legal assistant or paralegal, and not with the lawyer, then the lawyer is doing you a disservice. It’s just like going to the doctor. When I go to see the doctor, I may meet with a nurse for a while, but it’s the doctor’s services that I’m interested in, not the nurse. If I never saw the doctor, I’m not going to pay the doctor. And if the doctor never sees you or talks to you to find out your problems, how does he know what your problems are?
It works the same way with a lawyer. If the lawyer that you go to see about your bankruptcy in Houston doesn’t have the time to meet with you, no problem, just leave. There are many good lawyers who will represent you in a bankruptcy, that do take the time to personally meet with you and answer all your questions. A legal assistant may not even realize that you have a particular problem with your case. I personally meet with all of my clients.
Knowledge and competency. While every lawyer doesn’t know everything about the law, you obviously want the lawyer that you hire for your case to be very knowledgeable about the area of law you hire him or her to handle. I am Board Certified in Consumer Bankruptcy Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. I have been Board Certified since 1989.
That means that I’ve been heavily involved in the practice of consumer bankruptcy law in Houston at least 5 years (in my case since 1982). It also means that I have been recommended by other lawyers and judges for board certification. And it means that I have passed a difficult day long written examination about bankruptcy law. I concentrate specifically in the area of consumer and small business bankruptcy law.
There are about 84,000 lawyers in the State of Texas. As of last count, 147 were Board Certified in Consumer Bankruptcy Law.
I’ve also been a member of the College of the State Bar of Texas since its inception in 1990. That means I’ve voluntarily completed more than 30 hours of continuing legal education each year for each and every year since then.
All that aside, let me share something practical with you that I’ve learned about evaluating a professional that you are thinking about hiring. Assuming that you’re a reasonably intelligent person, if a professional person cannot explain something to you in plain language, that you can understand, then that person probably doesn’t know what they’re talking about.
So if you meet with a lawyer, doctor, or whoever, and you ask them a question about what they propose to do for you, if they have to use big words, and can’t explain it in a way that you can understand it, it’s very likely that they don’t know what they’re talking about. Someone who really understands something can explain it so that you can understand it. And if they can explain it to you, but won’t take the time to do it, I wouldn’t hire them either.
Honesty. I hate to have to bring this up, but it’s a fact that there are dishonest lawyers, just like there are dishonest contractors, plumbers, car salesmen, and so on. And let me tell you, at this particular time in Houston, there are some dishonest bankruptcy lawyers. I can’t name them for you, or I would be sued, but I would certainly like to name them.
There are also Houston bankruptcy lawyers that from time to time are disciplined by the State Bar, or are in trouble with their clients in Bankruptcy Court for not doing their jobs. Some are even investigated and prosecuted by the U.S. Department of Justice for committing bankruptcy crimes.
Unfortunately it can be very difficult to stop a lawyer from practicing law once he or she gets a law license. Your best defense is to check with the State Bar before you hire a lawyer, to see if that lawyer has been disciplined.
How to tell if you have a dishonest lawyer: Hint #1 If a lawyer ever tells you to not disclose property, not to list creditors, or to put down false information on the bankruptcy papers that are to be filed with the Bankruptcy Court to start a bankruptcy case, GET OUT OF THAT LAW OFFICE. TELL THE LAWYER YOU NO LONGER NEED HIS OR HER SERVICES AND LEAVE. The documents that are filed with the Bankruptcy Court are signed by you under penalty of perjury, and signing false documents is a federal crime and can quickly get you a personal interview with an FBI agent.
NEVER, NEVER give a Power of Attorney to a lawyer or anyone else to sign bankruptcy schedules or other papers to be filed in Bankruptcy Court for you. YOU are required to personally sign them, and YOU are responsible for their content. Period. DO NOT sign blank papers or schedules, even with the attorney’s promise to fill them in later.
Hint #2 If a Houston bankruptcy lawyer proposes to meet you for the first time at a Denny’s restaurant, or a topless bar? (true story), and won’t tell you where his office is, FORGET IT! Hire someone else. No kidding, there is really a former local bankruptcy lawyer, now barred from practicing in Bankruptcy Court, that did this, met people in public places, took money from them, filed a little paperwork with the Court, never followed up to complete his cases or take care of his client’s problems, and the result was very bad.
Again, contact the State Bar of Texas at State Bar of Texas Web Site or by calling 1-800-204-2222, to make sure the lawyer is a lawyer. Then check his or her disciplinary history to see if he or she has been in trouble with the Bar. This doesn’t guarantee that you will get a good, honest, competent lawyer, but it’s a start. After that, interview the lawyer and trust your instincts.
BY ALL MEANS if a lawyer engages in conduct that is unethical or dishonest, file a complaint (called a "grievance") with the State Bar of Texas! Of course, not every dispute with a lawyer involves unethical conduct, but if the lawyer is a crook, the legal profession as a whole wants them stopped — but it’s up to you to file a complaint. Forms are available on the State Bar web site or by calling the local grievance committee at 713-759-6931.
There is another reason that you want an honest get out of debt lawyer in Houston to represent you. The bankruptcy judges and trustees generally know which lawyers they can trust. They know which lawyers have thoroughly interviewed the clients, and they generally know which lawyers will counsel clients to not disclose assets or creditors, make unlawful transfers of assets, or do other improper things.
That’s why it’s especially important for you to pick a lawyer who has a good reputation. A lawyer with a good reputation for honesty can in many cases be a more effective lawyer for you, because what he or she says and does is respected and given more weight and credence. At least that’s my philosophy, and the way I live my life and the way I practice law.
My reputation is very important to me, and I work to keep a good reputation by conducting myself honestly in all my dealings with the Court and the trustees, my clients and other parties.
I hope this information has been helpful to you. If you want to call my main telephone number here in Houston for an appointment or more information, please call 713-772-8037. I am a Board Certified get out of debt lawyer in Houston by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization.
