Young bankruptcy attorney was approached to file a Chapter 11 for an LLC developing a condo complex, with a foreclosure sale looming. Should they take the case, she asked me. For all the reasons I’ve written before, I thought no, not this case, not now. After we discussed the difficulties of a single asset case […]
Number One Reason to Avoid Taking a Chapter 11
Put aside inexperience: the most important reason not to take on a Chapter 11 is that it can kill your practice. The rules and procedures for Chapter 11 were created for the debtor “big boys”, the corporations that hire tall-building lawyers by the score. There are innumerable hoops to jump through, even if you were […]
I Flunked Mindreading
For six months, I’ve been writing this blog for newish bankruptcy lawyers, trying to imagine what it is that I know about this practice that you, as a newcomer, needs to know sooner rather than later. I’ve shamelessly lifted stories from my clients and those of my local newbies to write about here. I’ve snatched […]
The Many Hats of a Bankruptcy Lawyer
Lee Rosen, a well known family lawyer, described the demands of his practice thus: Family law attorneys live in an information deprivation zone. They need to know more than they can possibly remember. They’ve got to master the fundamentals of family law. On top of that, they must have a working knowledge of property […]
Bankruptcy Exemptions: 10 Ways to Deal with Excess Cash
Bankruptcy lawyers occasionally are confronted with the client with more cash, or other marketable assets, worth more than the available exemptions to protect them. And state exemption systems often protect the darndest things, like a mule and a plow. A milk cow. The family bible. Those aren’t the things most of us are striving to […]
