I had my 341 last week and now am waiting for the discharge. Does the 180
days start at filing or after 341? Also, I checked at City Hall and there
is a judgement /lien against me/my property. I was told that this needs to
be handled after the BK. I have also gotten different price quotes from
different attnys. for this procedure ranging from $300 to $1200. for this
service. My attorney does not handle this. Any input would be most
helpful.

The 180 day period starts on the filing of the Petition.

Lien avoidance actions must be started before your bankruptcy case is
closed, not after, and is filed with the Bankruptcy Court. FWIW, in a
straightforward case, I typically charge $895 for a lien avoidance suit.

--

Brett

************************************************** ***************
* Personal Injury/Malpractice Bankruptcy *
* *
* BRETT WEISS, P.C. *
* Attorneys at Law *
* Maryland, D.C. and Federal Bars *
* lawyer@brettweiss.com *
* http://www.brettweiss.com *
* *
* Small Business Estates & Estate Planning *
************************************************** ***************

The Small Print: This response is for discussion purposes only. It isn't
meant to be legal advice and you shouldn't treat it as such. If you want
legal advice, speak with a local lawyer familiar with your state's laws who
can review *all* of the facts and the law applicable to your situation.
************************************************** ***************

"Patti B" <patti@earthlink.net> wrote in message
news:wZKRb.200$F23.91@newsread2.news.pas.earthlink .net... I had my 341 last week and now am waiting for the discharge. Does the 180 days start at filing or after 341? Also, I checked at City Hall and
there is a judgement /lien against me/my property. I was told that this needs
to be handled after the BK. I have also gotten different price quotes from different attnys. for this procedure ranging from $300 to $1200. for this service. My attorney does not handle this. Any input would be most helpful.

"Brett Weiss" <lawyer@erols.com> wrote in message
news:QoydnSa0w8rIz4XdRVn-jw@comcast.com... The 180 day period starts on the filing of the Petition. Lien avoidance actions must be started before your bankruptcy case is closed, not after, and is filed with the Bankruptcy Court. FWIW, in a straightforward case, I typically charge $895 for a lien avoidance suit.

I am curious about the last sentence. By "a lien avoidance suit", do you
mean $895 for a separate action in addition to the cost of doing the Chapter
7 bankruptcy case? Or does that mean $895 for the bankruptcy and the
motions?

I am not questioning the cost itself. It's just that I thought that when
someone files a Chapter 7 bankruptcy and has judgments, the attorney would
routinely advise the client about the judicial lien issue and include the
motions to avoid judicial liens as part of the overall fee.

The original poster seemed to indicate that the attorney who handled the
bankruptcy case didn't explain the judicial lien issue up front and, in
effect, only took on half of the bankruptcy case. So, this person could
have walked out of bankruptcy thinking everything was discharged only to
find out later on that his/her house is still encumbered by one or more
judgments.

I have never seen a lien avoidance action included as part of the "basic"
Chapter 7 fee. There could be one fee, but it would be more than double the
regular fee for a Chapter 7.

The problem is that the documents and time commitment for a Chapter 7 can be
pretty well figured out by the attorney, and there are economies of scale.
Each lien avoidance action, however, is a "custom" piece of work, that
requires a fair amount of time to investigate, prepare and then argue in
Court, so it usually costs more than the Chapter 7 itself.

(And yes, a lawyer has an obligation to explain the fact that liens aren't
discharged in a "basic" bankruptcy, and to explain what needs to be done to
remove them. This is so basic, I even include it in my retainer agreement.)

--
Brett

************************************************** ***************
* Personal Injury/Malpractice Bankruptcy *
* *
* BRETT WEISS, P.C. *
* Attorneys at Law *
* Maryland, D.C. and Federal Bars *
* lawyer@brettweiss.com *
* http://www.brettweiss.com *
* *
* Small Business Estates & Estate Planning *
************************************************** ***************

The Small Print: This response is for discussion purposes only. It isn't
meant to be legal advice and you shouldn't treat it as such. If you want
legal advice, speak with a local lawyer familiar with your state's laws who
can review *all* of the facts and the law applicable to your situation.
************************************************** ***************

"RJP" <RJP@noemailadd.rjp> wrote in message
news:WcKdnbTauI6d94fdRVn-vw@comcast.com... "Brett Weiss" <lawyer@erols.com> wrote in message news:QoydnSa0w8rIz4XdRVn-jw@comcast.com... The 180 day period starts on the filing of the Petition. Lien avoidance actions must be started before your bankruptcy case is closed, not after, and is filed with the Bankruptcy Court. FWIW, in a straightforward case, I typically charge $895 for a lien avoidance suit. I am curious about the last sentence. By "a lien avoidance suit", do you mean $895 for a separate action in addition to the cost of doing the
Chapter 7 bankruptcy case? Or does that mean $895 for the bankruptcy and the motions? I am not questioning the cost itself. It's just that I thought that when someone files a Chapter 7 bankruptcy and has judgments, the attorney would routinely advise the client about the judicial lien issue and include the motions to avoid judicial liens as part of the overall fee. The original poster seemed to indicate that the attorney who handled the bankruptcy case didn't explain the judicial lien issue up front and, in effect, only took on half of the bankruptcy case. So, this person could have walked out of bankruptcy thinking everything was discharged only to find out later on that his/her house is still encumbered by one or more judgments.

"Brett Weiss" <lawyer@erols.com> wrote in message
news:wY6dnUJHy5vY8IfdRVn-uQ@comcast.com... I have never seen a lien avoidance action included as part of the "basic" Chapter 7 fee. There could be one fee, but it would be more than double
the regular fee for a Chapter 7. The problem is that the documents and time commitment for a Chapter 7 can
be pretty well figured out by the attorney, and there are economies of scale. Each lien avoidance action, however, is a "custom" piece of work, that requires a fair amount of time to investigate, prepare and then argue in Court, so it usually costs more than the Chapter 7 itself. (And yes, a lawyer has an obligation to explain the fact that liens aren't discharged in a "basic" bankruptcy, and to explain what needs to be done
to remove them. This is so basic, I even include it in my retainer
agreement.)

Thanks. I think the last part of what you wrote (the part in parentheses)
is especially important. Including that in the retainer agreement is a
great idea! I wonder if many other attorneys routinely do that.

"RJP" <RJP@noemailadd.rjp> wrote in, in part: "Brett Weiss" <lawyer@erols.com> wrote in part: (And yes, a lawyer has an obligation to explain the fact that liens
aren't discharged in a "basic" bankruptcy, and to explain what needs to be done to remove them. This is so basic, I even include it in my retainer agreement.) Thanks. I think the last part of what you wrote (the part in parentheses) is especially important. Including that in the retainer agreement is a great idea! I wonder if many other attorneys routinely do that.

I do . . . now. <g>

LOL!

I have a *five page* retainer that I use for bankruptcy cases. It's grown
significantly over the years. <g> If you'd like to see a copy, please send
me your e-mail address and I'll send you a copy.

--
Brett

************************************************** ***************
* Personal Injury/Malpractice Bankruptcy *
* *
* BRETT WEISS, P.C. *
* Attorneys at Law *
* Maryland, D.C. and Federal Bars *
* lawyer@brettweiss.com *
* http://www.brettweiss.com *
* *
* Small Business Estates & Estate Planning *
************************************************** ***************

The Small Print: This response is for discussion purposes only. It isn't
meant to be legal advice and you shouldn't treat it as such. If you want
legal advice, speak with a local lawyer familiar with your state's laws who
can review *all* of the facts and the law applicable to your situation.
************************************************** ***************

"Thoth" <thoth@notlisted.net> wrote in message
news:6SxSb.12563$QJ3.2266@fed1read04... "RJP" <RJP@noemailadd.rjp> wrote in, in part: "Brett Weiss" <lawyer@erols.com> wrote in part: (And yes, a lawyer has an obligation to explain the fact that liens aren't discharged in a "basic" bankruptcy, and to explain what needs to be
done to remove them. This is so basic, I even include it in my retainer agreement.) Thanks. I think the last part of what you wrote (the part in
parentheses) is especially important. Including that in the retainer agreement is a great idea! I wonder if many other attorneys routinely do that. I do . . . now. <g>

"Brett Weiss" <lawyer@erols.com> wrote in message
news:7_OdnXv0mb1HUYfdRVn-jw@comcast.com... LOL! I have a *five page* retainer that I use for bankruptcy cases. It's grown significantly over the years. <g> If you'd like to see a copy, please send me your e-mail address and I'll send you a copy.

That is really cool. I'm looking forward to reading it.

Could you send me also a copy of that if you don't mind. Thanks, Jim
"Thoth" <thoth@notlisted.net> wrote in message
news:OrQSb.12934$QJ3.5923@fed1read04... "Brett Weiss" <lawyer@erols.com> wrote in message news:7_OdnXv0mb1HUYfdRVn-jw@comcast.com... LOL! I have a *five page* retainer that I use for bankruptcy cases. It's
grown significantly over the years. <g> If you'd like to see a copy, please
send me your e-mail address and I'll send you a copy. That is really cool. I'm looking forward to reading it.