Much like when Sheryl Crow sang about the first cut being the deepest, the first step of filing bankruptcy is the hardest! Mustering up the confidence to call a Minnesota bankruptcy attorney to schedule an initial consultation is no easy feat! It takes a whole lotta courage to start the process and to continue with that process.

When all is said and done, the end result of all the information you have given us, as well as the reports we have collected is a fully completed and true bankruptcy petition. This hunk of paper is essentially your entire financial life laid out for the bankruptcy court. Once your case is filed, you will receive a copy of your petition for your records and at first glance, it seems like a bunch of legalese mixed with some gibberish for good measure. So, exactly what information does the petition all hold?

We have all had that feeling –that “everyone is staring at me! Why? Is there something in my teeth? Are my pants on backwards?” feeling. Being judged, being scrutinized. And, knowing that feeling, many potential clients worry that once they file for bankruptcy, the entire world will know or somehow be able to smell it on them. Bankruptcy is portrayed as a dark cloud that follows you around everywhere that everyone can see and judge.  

If you ask someone at random to explain bankruptcy, they will probably give you an answer that goes something like, “isn’t it a complicated legal thing that means you have no money and everyone judges you for it?” And the only thing that person would be right about is the “complicated legal thing” part! The gist is that most people, even those that have contemplated bankruptcy, don’t really know what bankruptcy is, just that it has to do with money and it comes with a big, old stigma.

“Humble attorney” may seem like an oxymoron considering how lawyers tend to be portrayed on courtroom dramas –with their newly pressed suits and shiny $400 loafers and constant, “OBJECTION”’s. Having that stereotype floating around in your head can easily make scheduling a consultation with a law firm absolutely daunting.

I am not suggesting that there are no scenarios under which I would sign a reaffirmation agreement. That would not be accurate. In fact, years ago, I had a guy who was living in St Paul, Minnesota and he had a home loan totaling $138,100.00. The mortgage company proposed a reaffirmation agreement where the guy would pay $86,340.00 to keep the house! That was a huge discount and the client totally jumped on it and signed the reaffirmation agreement with my approval.

Which St. Paul, Minnesota bankruptcy law firm you hire is an important question to ask yourself. There are not many stressors in life that are as high as the need to file bankruptcy. Do you really want to hire a law firm that treats you like a number and treats their employees like dirt? Of course not. I am sure you would not be shocked to hear that unfortunately some law firm’s don’t treat their employees very well and when that happens, guess who also suffers? Yes, you do! That is not right—especially in a time of vulnerability for our guests.

Choosing a lawyer is, arguable, almost as important as choosing a spouse (maybe, in some cases more important!) An attorney is going to be with you through some tough times and it is important for you to evaluate your options and know exactly who you are hitching up with!

Post-bankruptcy, one of the most important things that you will want to do is to check your credit report. There are three credit reporting bureaus you will need to go through in order to do this: Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. Each of the bureaus generates its own individual report for each person. Doing a thorough check of your credit requires pulling reports from all three companies.

As Kain & Scott grows, adding more permanent locations and additional attorneys and team members, we want to improve our processes as well! We continuously work to make sure our clients have the best experience possible.

If you live in St. Paul, Minnesota and you have decided that filing Chapter 7 Bankruptcy makes sense for you and your family, you need to do this right now. Doing these things will make your Chapter 7 Bankruptcy filing go much smoother!

So, you have come to the decision to file for bankruptcy. You have weight your options and are ready to contact a Kain & Scott attorney to file your Minnesota bankruptcy case. There are a few things that you need to take into account and to be mindful of to ensure your bankruptcy goes smoothly and swiftly!

One of the key players in any bankruptcy is the trustee. The trustee is an appointed court official who is assigned to, essentially, be the neutral party between the debtor and the creditors. Most of the trustees work is behind the scenes. The trustee is meant to be a type of mediator and go-between so that both sides of a bankruptcy are equally represented.

The word “creditor” brings to mind harassing calls and threatening letters for most all of our clients –ruthless, unforgiving, and shameless in their tactics to collect on a debt. The goal of bankruptcy is to get these guys off your back for good. To do that, it is important to know exactly who you are dealing with. There are different types of creditors and they have unique types of claims that can affect your filing.

We want all of our clients to be well informed about all of their possible debt solution options. We also want all of our potential clients to have complete transparency about who Kain & Scott is, what we do, and how we may be able to help them get their life back! To achieve these goals we offer anyone who visits and browses our Kain & Scott website downloadable resources completely free!

We are not offended knowing that we are our client’s absolute last choice. We are not hurt when clients tell us they wished they did not have to be in the office and would rather be just about anywhere else. We know and we understand. Clients come to us having exhausted every other option. Some of those options (such as debt consolidation) having plunged them even deeper into overwhelming debt than what they started with!