How much will filing for bankruptcy cost me?

Our representation is uncompromised, yet our fees are low!  Our base Website-exclusive chapter 7 legal fee for a lower-income individual is $1000* with easy installments available. This is literally half or less of the big-firm cost where you pay an "attorney fee" but you may not even meet with an attorney.  Remember that old bumper sticker your local cafe would sell: "Friends don't let friends go to Starbucks"?  Well, the same applies here: friends don't let friends go to the giant corporate bankruptcy mills.  We break down the fees below.

Attorney  Fees:

We make attorney representation for your bankruptcy possible on a tight budget.

Chapter 7 bankruptcy attorney fee: our base Website-exclusive chapter 7 legal fee for a lower-income individual is $1000.*  Flexible payment plans and low down payments are available.

Chapter 13 bankruptcy attorney fee: chapter 13 attorney fees are prescribed by the Bankruptcy Court and do not vary among practitioners.  However, some of the fees may be incorporated into your payment plan so that the advance payment is limited.  Flexible payment plans and low down payments are available.

Court Filing Fees:

The Southern District of California Bankruptcy Court’s filing fees are standard.  If you absolutely cannot afford the filing fee, The Court may waive the chapter 7 bankruptcy filing fee if your income is within 150% of the poverty line for your household size. Poverty guidelines may be found here.

Court filing fee for Chapter 7 bankruptcy is $299

Court filing fee for Chapter 13 bankruptcy is $274

(Fees are current as of 2010; fees are subject to change.)

Debtor Education Fees:

Finally, there are fees for two debtor education courses:

A Credit Counseling course is required prior to filing for bankruptcy.

A Financial Management Course must be completed prior to receiving your bankruptcy discharge and within 45 days after your meeting of creditors. 

The cost for both of these courses together is $54 if you choose to use our provider (there is no extra charge for joint-filers).  Elsewhere you might pay nearly double.

Debtor education fees might be waived under circumstances where your Bankruptcy Court fees are waived. For more information on debtor education, you may consult the United States Trustee FAQs here.

As a side note: we can’t charge your credit card.  It’s just not in Visa, MC and AmEx’s best interest to front payment to the same attorney who will then wipe out that debt with your successful bankruptcy filing.  By the way, if you’re reading this, then you should throw away your credit cards now.  Credit use prior to bankruptcy can get you into trouble.

*This attorney fee applies to most cases for clients who are single and earn below below-median income; simply call us for a quote or details.  This attorney fee applies in most cases.

Rates and Payment Methods

General Bankruptcy Questions

Chapter 7 Bankruptcy

Chapter 13 Bankruptcy

What NOT to do

Why do I need an attorney to file?

Rates and Payment Methods