Bankruptcy
Getting Started
When choosing a bankruptcy attorney you want to make sure you have hired someone who has experience with the Local and Federal Bankruptcy rules and procedures. Bankruptcy is a major financial decision but that process does not have to be a difficult one.
Our attorneys have advised and represented thousands of individuals and couples in Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceedings in Illinois. We believe in making you comfortable with the whole process so we offer a free, no risk consultation where we determine your potential to file bankruptcy and explain the whole process from beginning to end.
Your consultation will be conducted by one of our attorneys. You will not be pushed off to a legal assistant or a paralegal nor will you speak to a customer service representative.
We will go over the whole process so you can understand the legal procedures involved along with the advantages and disadvantages to your current situation. Most lawyers will just hand you a questionnaire to fill out and never take the time to explain what is happening - we do not do that.
You Are Not Alone
You are not the only person who is suffering from creditor harassment due to your inability to pay your bills. Immediately upon retaining us you will be able to start referring all the calls you receive from your creditors to us. Third party collection agencies will be prohibited from contacting you directly after you hire legal counsel. Our firm can help you stop wage garnishments so you take home all of the money you worked hard to obtain.
In Bankruptcy court attorney fees are required to be paid before we can file but we do have payment options. Call for more details.
At Law Offices of Robert J. Ralis we are committed to our clients. We will use our knowledge and expertise to get your case through to discharge in a timely manner.
Below are is some useful information to help you understand the bankruptcy process and see the documents required to file
CHAPTER 7 BANKRUPTCY INFORMATION AND OVERVIEW
What is Chapter 7 bankruptcy relief ?
Filing a petition for relief under Chapter 7 of the US Bankruptcy Code allows a “fresh start” for persons who qualify. You can get debt forgiveness (discharge) of all allowable debts and get a new financial life without the burden of debts you cannot afford to pay due to your current financial situation. I like to call it “recycling the consumer “ in that you can rebuild your financial life if you start over without impossible debt burdens.
How do I qualify ?
In a short interview of five to fifteen minutes of your time, we can usually determine if you may qualify for bankruptcy relief. There is no charge for this initial interview.
If you believe I may qualify, where do we go from here ?
We need to get detailed information on all your debts, assets and income.
OK, so what do I do next ?
Here is where the free part ends. Once you pay a minimal retainer we may need as much as one to two hours of our time to collect the necessary detailed information and prepare your filing.
What does it cost ?
The fee for a single filer will start at $2000.00 for the attorney fee and $338.00 filing fee. You also need to take two credit counseling courses on the internet for about $15-$20 each depending on the course provider. A married couple filing jointly starts at $2,500.00 and a simple business or self-employed person starts at a minimum of $2,500.00.
Do I have to pay the whole amount now ?
No, we can start with a payment of $500.00 and after we take all your information and process it we can confirm that you will get a discharge or not. We also offer a financing option using Fresh Start Funding. Due to the additional work involved with financing we charge an additional $650 for financing.
What if I don’t qualify for Chapter 7 ?
You may qualify for Chapter 13 (repayment plan over three to five years for ten percent or more of your debt and/or assets). We do not handle Chapter 13 filings but we will refer you to an attorney who will help you with this process.
LIST OF MATERIALS NECESSARY FOR POSSIBLE BANKRUPTCY QUALIFICATION
Copies of all current bills that show your creditor’s name, current address, account # and amounts due. This includes: credit cards, mortgage statements, car loan statements, car lease documents/statements, medical bills, student loan bills and any other information relating to creditors such as court cases, etc…
IN THE ALTERNATIVE, the above applies only if you have a limited number of creditors (ten or less) and know you have accurate information. Otherwise, we recommend you invest around $30 for our two source credit check which will have all current creditor information.
Six months of pay stubs (or a pay advice print-out from your employer) clearly showing all earnings & deductions. If you are self employed, a six month profit & loss statement
Last two years of Federal tax returns
Information on all your assets: bank account information, autos, pension, retirement plans, stocks, bonds, personal assets (furniture, jewelry, sports equipment, collectibles, business equipment, tools, any other items of value).
A list of all your monthly living expenses (rent or mortgage payment, auto payments, cell phone and utility expenses, food, entertainment, child care, elder care, medicine, gas, auto repairs, clothing and dry cleaning , insurance and any other regular monthly expenses.
PRACTICAL TIPS: If you have not already done so, STOP using credit cards. If you did recently make a charge on a credit card, you must make at least one monthly payment before filing
DO NOT make any cash advances on any credit cards since these may not be dischargeable if done within six months of filing
DO NOT make large payments to relatives, friends or a credit card you may want to keep. The Trustee can recover this money back from all the above if he/she believes you preferred or favored one creditor at the expense of another.
Zero Down Attorney Fees
If you qualify we offer a zero-down attorney fees financing option. That way you only pay the $338 filing fee and can pay our attorney fees through payments over the next year.