Introduction
Every state and community offers free legal bankruptcy advice and help filing for bankruptcy. Many resources and assistance are available to help with any questions. If you are in need of free legal bankruptcy advice the Urban League, United Way and many others do a great job assisting with the filing for bankruptcy.
Step 1
The Process
Make sure to look for the best possible person to help with your legal matters. Bankruptcy laws can be very tricky and complicated if you are not careful. Your legal team must be committed and willing to work hard in order to complete this process. With free legal bankruptcy advice, you will not have a say in who you receive to help with your case. You could have someone extremely new and inexperienced representing you or you could get a very seasoned veteran to represent you.
Step 2
Legal Aid
Legal aid is typically a nonprofit organization that represents individuals not fortunate enough to pay the fees needed for legal representation. This organization is widely known in the community and offers free legal bankruptcy advice. A list of debts, assets and income is needed before services are provided in order to determine if legal services should be received for free.
Legal aid centers are set up to help low-income clients who otherwise could not afford legal services. Most centers have either one lawyer or paralegal on staff or several who volunteer their time. Clients can find paperwork, law books and other materials to help research their cases.
Step 3
How Legal Aid Helps
Legal aid does not provide free representation in court; however, it does offer free legal bankruptcy advice. Most legal aid users need help with a divorce, bankruptcy, child support, rental issues or traffic court. Some cases may require a lawyer, and those clients are reviewed on a case-by-case basis, which may result in a pro-bono attorney offering service. Lawyers are often required to offer a small number of pro-bono (free) services each year. Lawyers often save these for those who have cases they cannot handle on their own. Most centers offer classes to help understand the process of common cases such as family law issues and free legal bankruptcy advice.
Step 4
Who Qualifies
Legal aid typically uses federal guidelines to determine who qualifies for free legal bankruptcy advice. Some centers will still speak with you if you are just over that amount, but they may only offer booklets and a general direction. Resources are generally saved for qualifying clients.
Step 5
State Bar Association
The State Bar provides a listing of lawyers who will give free legal bankruptcy advice. The State Bar Association also provides resources to legal aid and referral services if none are available. The public library is available for addition information on legal advice.
Credit Counselors
Credit counselors will assist in helping the free legal bankruptcy advice needed for bankruptcy court. They are not qualified to represent, but they will assist in this process. You must receive counseling services before your petition and during this process legal aid, services will be available. All counselors are certified through the United States Trustee Program of the United States Department of Justice.
Tips
Bring a list of debts, assets and income to your first meeting.
Record the meeting or take extensive notes.
