A bankruptcy attorney is going to be one of the best resources at your disposal when you are filing a bankruptcy case, mostly because of the many ways in which he or she can assist you. An attorney can help you pick the right type of bankruptcy for you, deal with your creditors, and offer flexible payment terms.

Pick The Right Type Of Bankruptcy

A bankruptcy attorney can help you pick the right type of bankruptcy for your particular situation. For example, chapter 7 and 13 are two of the most common types of personal bankruptcy types available, but both options are not going to be suitable for every person.

If you are unemployed, or struggling to manage your basic living expenses, then your attorney will likely recommend a chapter 7 bankruptcy. This type of bankruptcy will eliminate most forms of debt and leave you with a clean slate. The only downsides to this type of bankruptcy is that you will have to surrender some of your property, such as any investments you may have or any cash that you have in your bank account.

If you do have sufficient income to pay back at least a portion of your debts, and do not want to surrender any property, the lawyer might recommend a chapter 13 bankruptcy. In that type of case, a payment plan will be created that will allow you to pay your debts in a shorter amount of time and pay less of the overall debt amount. This option will not cost you any of your property because you are actively paying your debts.

Deal With Creditors

An attorney can also help you deal with any overly aggressive or threatening debt collectors. Once you file for bankruptcy, a notice is sent to all of your creditors telling them that they must stop all collection or repossession activities.

This means that your creditors must also stop contacting you in any way. If any of your creditors do continue contacting you, you can inform your lawyer and he or she will contact them directly and have them stop.

Flexible Payment Terms

Finally, a bankruptcy filing is going to cost a bit of money, money that may be hard to come by if you are in a bad enough financial situation to consider a bankruptcy filing. Thankfully, a bankruptcy attorney will recognize that the filing fees may be too much for you and offer you a range of payment terms.

For example, your attorney may allow you to pay him or her over the course of several weeks or months, and then file the necessary paperwork once the final payment has been received. In addition, many bankruptcy attorneys will consider waiving some of their fees if your financial situation is desperate enough.

Speak to one or several bankruptcy attorneys today in order to get relief from both your debt and your creditors. An attorney can also assist you by offering various payment options and helping you decide on the best type of bankruptcy for your financial situation.