Because bankruptcy can have serious long-term financial and legal consequences, including loss of your property, you should hire an attorney and carefully consider all of your options before you file. Only an attorney can give you legal advice about what can happen as a result of filing for bankruptcy and what your options are. If you do file for bankruptcy, an attorney can help you fill out the forms properly and protect you, your family, your home, and your possessions.

Although the law allows you to represent yourself in bankruptcy court, you should understand that many people find it difficult to represent themselves successfully. The rules are technical, and a mistake or inaction may harm you. If you file without an attorney, you are still responsible for knowing and following all of the legal requirements.

You should not file for bankruptcy if you are not eligible to file or if you do not intend to file the necessary documents.

Bankruptcy fraud is a serious crime; you could be fined and imprisoned if you commit fraud in your bankruptcy case. Making a false statement, concealing property, or obtaining money or property by fraud in connection with a bankruptcy case can result in fines up to $250,000, or imprisonment for up to 20 years, or both. 18 U.S.C. §§ 152, 1341, 1519, and 3571.

Contact Us

We offer two options for appointments, Federal Way and Kent, Washington. Please call us at tel. (253) 476-2700 for an appointment or any questions.

The Process

Prior to your appointment you will need to complete the following.

Credit Report/Tax Returns/Etc.

Obtain your credit reports from www.annualcreditreport.com. If you can't print them, save them to your computer's desktop and securely upload them to us using the link below. You will want to review the credit reports to make sure everyone that you owe money to is included. If you have other creditors not listed on the credit reports, please bring the most current bill you have for those creditors, or simply make a list of the creditors (name, address and amount owing, if known).

You will need to bring with you to the appointment, copies of your last 2 years tax returns, 6 months bank statements and 6 months paystubs (as well as credit reports/bills, etc.)

Complete an intake Questionnaire

You will need to complete an intake questionnaire. See:

• Bankruptcy Intake Questionnaire in Microsoft Word Version or
• Bankruptcy Intake Questionnaire in Adobe Version.

Credit-Counseling Classes

The bankruptcy code requires that you obtain a credit-counseling certificate prior to filing bankruptcy. You can obtain it by completing the Pre-filing credit-counseling course at: www.personalfinanceeducation.com.

Transferring Files To Us Securely

To transfer credit reports, intake questionnaires or any other documents please use our secure file transfer, see: Secure File Transfer. Please save all your documents to your computer's desktop prior to uploading them.