
Fees
Fees
JLT Law Fees are Competitive:
At JLT Law, our fees our competitive with all the Bankruptcy firms in the area. However, we differ from other Bankruptcy Attorneys because we do not attempt to fit “the square peg into the round hole”. We treat you as an individual. We evaluate your case independently from all other cases. In addition, you get the added benefit of the extensive knowledge, reputation, and experience of JLT Law at no additional cost.
JLT Law Fees are Assessed on a Case-by-Case Basis:
Over the past four decades in which Jory Trease has been an Attorney, he has determined that each bankruptcy case is unique and deserves to be treated individually independent from all the others. JLT Law differs from most other firms because we do not have the “bankruptcy mill” mentality. Each client we represent has their bankruptcy case handled in the manner that is deemed best for that particular person, not “just like all the others”.
Fees based on your personal financial circumstances:
JLT Law does not have set fees for their bankruptcy services. Instead we operate on the philosophy that the cost for each case should be based on the complexity of that particular case. Attorneys that have set fees are simply overcharging half of their clients that have more simple cases, and are undercharging the other half that have more complex cases. You should only be charged for the legal services that are actually being devoted to your specific case. For that reason, JLT Law does not quote a fee for your case until a complete analysis of your personal needs can be ascertained during our initial free consultation.
Philosophy
JLT Law is NOT a Bankruptcy mill – we truly care for our clients.
During the past several decades, Jory L. Trease, the Senior Attorney at JLT Law, has been associated with Bankruptcy firms that were considered by the community as “Bankruptcy Mills”. The sole focus was on producing sufficient cases on a monthly basis to keep the firm afloat. There are plenty competitors of JLT Law that still maintain a similar philosophy to this very day. However, not JLT Law. We truly care for our clients as individuals. We evaluate each case on an independent basis to determine the best course of action for that particular person and family.
At JLT Law, we purposefully limit the number of cases filed on a monthly basis to assure that each of our clients receives sufficient personal attention. Our competitors appear to have lost sight with the desire that an individual customarily has to be able to discuss their case directly with an Attorney rather than a paralegal or legal assistant.
From the initial appointment, clients of JLT Law meet with an Attorney, we do not delegate meeting with the most important people in our business lives, our clients, to anyone less than the legal professionals that they sought out assistance from in the first place. Our Attorneys are reasonably available throughout the entire legal process to answer questions and communicate with our clients. If our Court calendars and schedule will not enable us to personally engage in the conversation, our staff are instructed to obtain sufficient details about the inquiry from the client, they will then converse with us at the next available break about the issue. At that time, either the Attorney will return a telephone call personally, or if it is an urgent matter that needs immediate attention, the staff member will relay the information to the client with instructions that if they still desire to talk to the Attorney, an estimated time that such a conversation will occur.
Competitor Fees:
The truth about marketing plots related to Bankruptcy Fees.-
0.00 Down BankruptcyThere is no such thing as a “$0.00 down” Bankruptcy. JLT Law does not engage in deceptive marketing ploys. $0.00 down Bankruptcy is an advertising scheme to get you into the Attorney’s Office. There are filing fees and mandatory education fees that need to be paid. No Attorney is going to pay for you to file Bankruptcy! If an Attorney is going to mislead you just to get your business, is that the type of Attorney you want working for you? Such Attorneys are being investigated by the U.S. Trustee’s Office, the U.S. Attorneys Office, and are being sanctioned by the Bankruptcy Court for such marketing claims. By filing with such an Attorney, your personal name is being associated with such conduct.
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Easy Payment Plans
You are paying an Attorney a significant amount of your hard-earned money to relieve you from your indebtedness. If the Attorney is not paid his fees entirely up front, the debt you owe to him is legally discharged just like any other debt. There is no exclusion for Attorneys fees in the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. In other words, any Attorney that is willing to allow you to make payments after the Bankruptcy is filed is probably not telling you the entire story. He or she is looking out for their own financial interests instead of yours. If they were being entirely honest, they would tell you that their legal fees are discharged just like any other Creditors debt. Of course they are not going to tell you that because they want you to pay them. Do you really want to hire an Attorney that is only telling you part of the information that is in your interest, and hiding the part that is in his/her financial interest?
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Free BankruptcySpoiler alert, nothing is “free”. Many colleagues in the Bankruptcy field engage in advertising methods of sending out letters and postcards inferring that their firm will file a Bankruptcy case for free or an extremely reduced price. These advertising schemes are intended to reach a person when they are in dire straights and suffering from significant financial distress. For instance, right after a Judgment has been entered against them. Not only does the Attorney then describe the worst case scenario possible (i.e.; garnishment, foreclosure of home, etc.), but they also attempt to present a deal that sounds too good to be true. It invariably is. In the past some Attorneys have actually stooped to the extent that they themselves have violated provisions of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code by arranging for potential Clients to obtain loans from companies that the Attorney holds an interest in, then requires the Client in advance to agree not to include the debt within their Bankruptcy filing. In essence, the Attorney suggests the Client to commit perjury to assure that the Attorney’s own financial well being is placed tantamount to that of the Client. It should be no surprise that the schemes being promoted by these less than ethical means are far from free, and subject both the Attorney and Client to potential sanctions the least of which is to be denied relief from the Debts which caused you to contact the Attorney in the first place. True and honest Debtors are entitled to discharge their debts under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code; anything less than that is suspect regardless of whether it is originally suggested by the Attorney for the Debtor. You get what you pay for, and “free” is not worth anything.
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You get what you pay forThe Bankruptcy field of practice is highly competitive. There are Attorneys out there that are willing to file a Bankruptcy Case for a few hundred dollars; but you will get much less than a few hundred dollars worth of effort out of them. These Attorneys are typically going to be the less experienced Attorneys that lack sufficient knowledge to avoid may of the pitfalls associated with filing a Bankruptcy Case. It is much more likely that your case will result in an investigation by the Trustee assigned to administer the Bankruptcy Estate, the U.S. Trustee’s Office, and the Court in general. Once that occurs, the Attorney charging lower fees will openly admit that he/she is in over their head and lacks the necessary experience to address the problems. At that time, you will be forced to pay much higher fees to a qualified Attorney to resolve the problems that have been created because you wanted to save a few hundred dollars up front. Ultimately, it will cost you more than if you were to simply do it right the first time by choosing an Attorney that has the reputation, knowledge, and experience necessary to avoid the problems in the first place. Hiring the right Attorney may cost you a few extra hundred dollars, but the peace of mind associated with avoiding problems far outweighs the perceived savings. JLT Law charges fees that are extremely competitive with other quality Bankruptcy Attorneys in the District of Utah.
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Set FeesThose Attorneys that are willing to quote you a fee over the telephone, or to publish them in advertising or on the internet, are demonstrating that your case is simply an average case along with every other case they have ever filed. JLT Law considers each potential client as an individual that is entitled to an independent analysis of their particular circumstances before establishing the appropriate fee for the legal services that will be required to adequately represent that specific case. During the twenty-eight (28) years that Jory Trease has been representing Debtors in Bankruptcy in the District of Utah, it has become very apparent that it is unfair to everyone to have an established set fee for Bankruptcy Cases. Mr. Trease maintains that any Attorney who has an established set price for a Bankruptcy Case is simply overcharging half of their customers that have easier cases, and undercharging the remaining half that have more complex cases. Rather than being “pigeon-holed” into a set price, Clients should demand that an Attorney know what their case entails to ensure they are receiving the same monetary value for the anticipated services that will be devoted to their case rather than being spread out amongst all of the Attorney’s entire client base. Clients of JLT Law are treated as individuals rather than a mere case number.