Many of my friends and colleagues who are not familiar with Bankruptcy ask me how I get paid.  Good Question.  

Sometimes clients have the money, but most times they do not.  But they still need help and we truly want to help.  So we have developed various alternatives to get the bankruptcy paid for.  Here are some of those.

IMPROVE CLIENT’S CASH FLOW AND MONIES AVAILABLE BY STOPPING PAYMENT TO CERTAIN CREDITORS

Example:  Jane owes $42,000.00 to a credit card and is doing her best paying that obligation at $1,200.00 per month.  Making those payments makes impossible for Jane to take of her family and there is certainly no money to pay the fees needed for a bankruptcy.  But by stopping payments to that credit card Jane can free up that $1,200.00 per month.  It will be several months before any of these creditors can sue, obtain a judgment and collect anything.  By then Jane will have been able to have the money to get the kids to the dentist and all the money needed to file the bankruptcy.  

MAKING PAYMENTS BEFORE THE CASE IS FILED OR AT THE END OF THE CASE

When you come to see us and agree on the fee, we set up a trust account in your name to make payments to the fee prior to filing.  Its much like a savings account for a bankruptcy.  Once the whole fee is paid, we can move quickly to file.  In appropriate cases, we will delay the payment of our fees until the end of the case.  We are more interested in helping the client than getting paid immediately.  

GUARANTORS CAN HELP

In some situations the client simply has no ability to pay now or in the near future.  Yet these clients need immediate help.  We can proceed if the client can provide an appropriate guarantor of the fee.  We do not expect the guarantor to pay.  We expect the client to pay.  So we put in writing that guarantor will not be called upon, if the client is paying as agreed.  We typically let the client set the terms of the payment arrangement if those terms are reasonable. 

COLLATERAL

In certain situations will provide needed services now, provided we are granted a lien upon some assets which is agreed to be sold in the future.  These situations require care and full disclosure to the client.  We will even advise the client to run this agreement through another lawyer to make sure the client believes he or she is treated fairly.  

At the ONeill, the main focus has been on helping the client.  For further information visit our website or call 608-519-3551 for a consult