The Los Angeles Bankruptcy Court is a busy place. If you go without a lawyer, expect trouble. The chances are you will get swallowed up and overwhelmed by a very intimidating process.
You probably have enough trouble already. Going through the Los Angeles Bankruptcy Court without the services of a lawyer might be your own financial suicide. Sadly for those who do it, about 39% of all Chapter 7 cases filed without a lawyer end in failure, (even for those who used so-called self-help services from a bankruptcy petition preparer).
If you file Chapter 7 without a lawyer in Los Angeles, (and also including the counties of Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura and Santa Barbara), your chance to successfully complete the case and receive a Chapter 7 discharge of your debts is only about 61%.
If you file Chapter 7 represented by a lawyer in the Los Angeles Bankruptcy Court, the odds of successfully receiving a discharge of debt will soar, reaching 95%.
The United States Bankruptcy Court, Central District of California is vast and covers the areas of Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino, Orange, Ventura, and Santa Barbara counties.
The study is entitled Access to Justice in Crisis: Self-Represented Parties and the Court .
The same court study also states that the number of self-represented debtors that manage to get to confirmation of a Chapter 13 plan is 0.4 percent – (less than one-half of one percent), clearly demonstrating that it is nearly impossible for self-represented debtors to succeed in Chapter 13.
This report is a sad reminder that you have little chance of a successful bankruptcy case in the Central District of California if you file without an experienced bankruptcy lawyer.
