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The number of Utahns who filed for bankruptcy increased 11 percent in December of 2016 from December 2015.

According to BankruptcyWatch President Lance Wickham, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for Utah received a total of 793 filings during December of 2016, up from the 708 bankruptcy petitions from the same period a year ago. "Filings were up during December but given the recent election results it is anyone's guess if that will continue into the next year," Wickham said.

If your financial struggle is causing you to consider filing for bankruptcy, you might be wondering if you must hire a lawyer to represent you.

The Risks

While technically there is no requirement to hire a lawyer.

The great thing about hiring competent counsel and doing your due diligence up front is that you should be able to trust your attorney and the advice they give you.

If, after retaining your attorney, you start questioning and wondering if you made the right choice, you should contemplate why.  You have an absolute right to a second opinion but the fact that you are seeking a second opinion speaks to a larger problem.  

Cancer alone is a terrible burden. Unfortunately when someone battles cancer they not only have to fight this horrific disease but all the other collateral damage that comes with it. And for many people they have no other alternative but to become tough as nails.

Today I received a phone call from...well for the purposes of this blog let's call her Mary, who is a cancer survivor and whose story I would like to share.

You learned in school not to write all your papers by just looking on the internet. It was a sign of lazy work and arose suspicion of cheating. And the information that you found on Wikipedia wasn’t to be trusted. Who knows who wrote that?

Times have changed since I was in school. Now the internet is a vital source of information and authorship can be verified on reliable websites. And it takes a long time for editors to publish books, and a long time to get to the library to check them out.

The biggest complaint that people have about their attorney is a lack of communication. People trust their attorney and open up about some really sensitive difficult situations. They share what they are struggling with the very most, and they share it with someone who knows a lot more than them about the law. Then they have to trust that they will get the help they need on their difficult situation.

Well, imagine the frustration when the attorney does not respond back in a way or a time that is quick enough.

Lincoln Law addresses our clients' very real needs to communicate with us about their case and their personal situation.

1. Do You Have a Reliable Source of Income?

In order to be eligible for a chapter 13 your income should be steady, periodic, and likely to continue.

As I watch my neighbors pull away in their new 33 ft. Chateau Motorhome, I can’t help but wonder how in the world they ever afforded it. I’ve only ever seen them drive old cars. And, while they’re always dressed quite nicely, he’s not wearing Calvin Klein, and she’s not carrying Gucci.

As I stop to think about it, I realize, that may be our problem. Our need to have shiny, new toys may be why we never seem to get ahead—why we have so much debt. I’ve always known my neighbors to be thrifty, now I know why.

The most fascinating part of my work is the first call. After speaking with what seems like countless people who are looking into the option of bankruptcy, I have found that some have tears, all are frustrated and stressed, and a surprising number apologize to me for their emotions. They apologize for the tears and frustration because they think that they are alone in their situation, and feel as if failure is knocking on their door. They have become overwhelmed with debt collectors, pressure to support their family, the inability to find work, medical bills, and the list goes on.