I believe in any position a person is in, whether it be receptionist or administrative assistant to office manager or executive, employers like to see that you will take that extra step beyond your assigned role to provide a better quality of work than they are accustomed to.

I had a discussion the other day with another Paralegal who stated that as a Bankruptcy Paralegal our role is to “just put in the information the attorney or client provides us and that is it.” This person could not be more wrong. As a Freelance Bankruptcy Paralegal our role is not just to provide data entry services, because if that was the case a trained monkey can do it.

A Bankruptcy Paralegal should be able to read beyond what is provided, put together the missing pieces and formulate the correct questions that need to be resolved prior to filing a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy petition. The most common errors that occur in bankruptcy cases is having the petition not properly put together and not catching the issues that will come up once the case is filed so that the attorney will know how to proceed accordingly, or better yet, catching those major issues prior to the bankruptcy petition being filed.

An example: A potential client contacted my office for assistance with a Trustee’s Motion to Dismiss a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Petition that was filed. The issue was that the debtor intended to surrender their homestead but at the same time benefited from the deduction of the lien on the home on the means test. This Chapter 7 is now in jeopardy since without that homestead benefit on this particular means test, a presumption of abuse arises and that debtor is no longer eligible for relief under a Chapter 7.

As a Bankruptcy Paralegal, and with any position you are in, you should take pride in your work. Do your due diligence and remember that if you perform your task to the best of your ability and get it right the first time around you won’t have to spend countless hours attempting to rectify those errors that could have been avoided.

Outsourced Paralegal Services, LLC was created with the sole practicing attorney and boutique law firm in mind. Outsourced Paralegal Services, LLC has provided extensive legal support services to attorneys and has filed over 500 consumer bankruptcy petitions in states such as New York, California, New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida, North Carolina, Texas, Idaho and Georgia. Please feel free to visit us at www.outsourcedparalegal.com

As a freelance bankruptcy paralegal who works with many attorney clients on Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcy cases, I often see the emotional side of bankruptcy filings more so than my bankruptcy attorney clients do.

After the initial consumer bankruptcy procedure is explained by my attorney clients, the majority of the time the consumer bankruptcy applicants are passed along to me for follow up to gather detailed information that allows me to properly and thoroughly complete their bankruptcy petition for the trustee to review. In the process of allocating their proper information and organizing their petition I often hear the back story and details of their troubled financial lives, and what led them to ultimately choose bankruptcy for a fresh start and some semblance of freedom from hounding creditors.

I am privy to people’s personal, financial circumstances which I take quite seriously and guard fiercely, and very often as I speak to these people on the phone or face to face they begin to break down emotionally. As a bankruptcy paralegal I see the humanity and the emotional fallout that comes along with an individual or a family filing either chapter 7 or chapter 13 bankruptcy.

I often find myself consoling people as I assist them and my bankruptcy attorney client in putting together and completing their bankruptcy petition. I hear about the circumstances that put their back against the wall financially, whether it be medical bills, needy or unscrupulous relatives, job loss … those are the most common precursors to bankruptcy filings. Sometimes, as a bankruptcy paralegal, I feel like part therapist as I listen with a sympathetic ear and try to guide people through the bankruptcy petition process as smoothly and swiftly as possible so they can get on with their lives.

Outsourced Paralegal Services, LLC was created with the sole practicing attorney and boutique law firm in mind.  Outsourced Paralegal Services, LLC has provided extensive legal support services to attorneys and has filed over 500 consumer bankruptcy petitions in states such as New York, California, New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida, North Carolina, Texas, Idaho and Georgia.   Please feel free to visit us at www.outsourcedparalegal.com

The phone rings and on the other end is the potential client who is looking for an attorney to help them with filing Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy; a typical day in a bankruptcy attorney’s office.  An appointment is set, the potential client comes in, and someone in your law firm initially meets with the client to get an idea of their detailed financial situation. That client then decides to move forward with filing for bankruptcy.  This is where the hurdle can begin when it comes to document and information collection – the full intake process begins.

Many bankruptcy attorneys and bankruptcy paralegals have dealt with a client who is not completely forthcoming in providing all the information needed to complete their bankruptcy petition, which causes an unnecessary delay in the filing of their bankruptcy petition.  In my experience, the number one cause of this is not having the client completely understand that this process is symbiotic, that one cannot operate without the other. Very often a client will inundate the law firm or the bankruptcy paralegal with a barrage of anxious phone calls and emails inquiring when their case will be filed, to which a bankruptcy paralegal will attempt to explain what additional documents or facts are needed to properly file their bankruptcy petition. Somehow this simple request on the part of the bankruptcy paralegal gets lost in translation.

As a bankruptcy paralegal I can state that for those clients who are forthcoming about their finances, prompt with providing the requested documentation and easily reachable, filing a bankruptcy petition for them is a fairly quick and seamless procedure.

I always felt that in order for the client to truly understand this is to clearly explain to them the steps that will occur in the preparation of their bankruptcy petition, and some insight into the bankruptcy petition process. This provides them with a sense of empowerment and knowledge.

Generally, it is the bankruptcy paralegal who is at the forefront of the bankruptcy process and he or she knows the most efficient, most effective and quickest way to go from interview to intake to filing. A good bankruptcy paralegal is also generally more familiar with various Trustees and what their specific needs are. Bankruptcy attorneys should tap into their bankruptcy paralegal’s pool of knowledge whenever possible to be sure they are producing satisfied bankruptcy clients and maintaining positive relations with their Trustee.

Most debtors, prior to filing bankruptcy, already feel emotionally and mentally drained from the financial burdens they are currently going through.  By having them feel like they are a part of the bankruptcy process and not just going through it, they will be more likely provide quick and accurate information, providing to your firm the documents requested and information needed to successfully, efficiently and expeditiously complete their bankruptcy petition.

Outsourced Paralegal Services, LLC was created with the sole practicing attorney and boutique law firm in mind. Outsourced Paralegal Services, LLC has provided extensive legal support services to attorneys and has filed over 500 consumer bankruptcy petitions in states such as New York, California, New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida, North Carolina, Texas, Idaho and Georgia. Please feel free to visit us at www.outsourcedparalegal.com