A bankruptcy lawyer in Washington DC is one which deals with the various legal facets associated with the declaration of bankruptcy by a client. The clients can be an individual, a couple or a company. The bankruptcy lawyer attends to a numbers of duties which include filing the petition for bankruptcy with the court, completing mandatory reports, a thorough review of the client’s assets and attendance at all hearings. In many cases when an individual files for bankruptcy protection he or she faces other issues as well that impact their financial position; these issues can include foreclosure on the home, repossessions of secured assets, creditor lawsuits and even wage garnishment. As result of all the ancillary issues the bankruptcy lawyer in Washington DC may represent the client not just for the bankruptcy but all these other issues as well.
To ensure that the clients assets are properly disposed of the lawyer works with a court appointed trustee. Once the assets have been disposed of the proceeds are used to pay the creditors. There are different types of bankruptcy, what was just described is Chapter 7, Chapter 13 bankruptcy is available to those who wish to keep their assets and file a plan for reorganization and repayment of the debt. The bankruptcy lawyer can often stall any foreclosure proceedings as well as stop repossession of their car and the garnishment of their wages.
There are very few people who know more about the bankruptcy process than a lawyer who is seasoned in this area of law. A bankruptcy lawyer deals with two primary forms of bankruptcy; Chapter 7 which is liquidation and Chapters 9, 11, 12 and 13 which deal with reorganization plans agreed by the court. When someone is faced with bankruptcy they are well advised to discuss their situation with a bankruptcy lawyer who can advise them which type of bankruptcy is best for them.
If the client is an individual in most cases either Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 is available, the choice is based on the personal circumstances of the debtor. The lawyer will point out to the client the differences in the types and tell him or her what the impact on their life might be. For those who file Chapter 7 they stand to lose second cars, vacation property and even family heirlooms but they have their debts retired and there is no long term repayment plan to face. Those who elect to file Chapter 13 can usually keep their assets but they must live very frugally for the next four or five years until they satisfy a repayment plan that was approved by the creditors and the court.
