If you were contemplating hiring an attorney to file your bankruptcy case and represent you, consider paying a heavy fee to your attorney. Where most bankruptcy attorneys would charge a flat fee for a simple bankruptcy case, others would charge an hourly fee. When you pay the fee of the attorney, it would depend on whether you file for Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy.
Flat fees against hourly fees
Most attorneys would charge a flat fee for representing you in a bankruptcy case. You would be required to pay a fixed amount for the attorney for seeking representation regardless of the amount of time your attorney spends on your case.
However, other attorneys would charge you an hourly rate. It may be uncommon in consumer bankruptcy cases. Rest assured that a likely scenario would be for the attorney to charge a flat fee for the bulk of the matter. The bankruptcy attorney Hagerstown, MD would be your best bet for handling the case offering reasonable fee-paying options. Your contract should mention the flat rate fee charged by the bankruptcy attorney.
Fee charged by Chapter-7 bankruptcy attorney
Most of the attorneys filing your case for bankruptcy under Chapter 7 would charge on the complexity of the case along with the other attorneys in the region. In case, you have plenty of debts or assets, you might have to pay more than an unemployed person without any assets.
For a simple case filed under Chapter 7, you may not require an experienced attorney. However, consider that bankruptcy is in a specialized area of law, and attorneys not having adequate experience in practicing bankruptcy cases would not accept your bankruptcy case.
Therefore, call a few attorneys before finalizing the one suitable for meeting your needs.
Fee charged by Chapter-13 bankruptcy attorney
An average fee charged by a Chapter 13 bankruptcy attorney would be acceptable or reasonable. However, for exceptional cases, the attorney would not be allowed to charge more than the guideline fee mentioned by the court.
Chapter 13 guideline fees would be different for every judicial district. However, a bankruptcy attorney would charge a decent amount that does not burn a significant hole in your pocket. A bankruptcy attorney charging a higher fee for additional work needs to justify the fee charged to the client.
