Starting a bankruptcy law firm

For the last five years, the story of filing bankruptcy proceedings in the US has drastically increased. For instance, in May 2009, there was a 41.4% year-over-year increase in the daily bankruptcy filing rate. Each year, thousands of individuals and businesses file bankruptcy due to their inability to pay their creditors. However, as the US bankruptcy code is complicated enough, anyone who wishes to file for bankruptcy needs legal guidance in order to guide them throughout the filing process. Today, there are thousands of law firms across the US, but firms that specifically deal with bankruptcy cases are much better equipped and efficient to represent their clients interests before the bankruptcy court. So keeping in mind the circumstances and data, its evident that you may be beneficial if you start a bankruptcy law firm within your state. But before that you need to have the required legal expertise and know the steps that involve the formation of a bankruptcy law firm.

Instructions

1) First, you need to set up an office for your bankruptcy law firm. Whether its a law firm or a small business corporation, you need to set up an office in order to deal with your clients. It can be located anywhere in a commercial office park, in a virtual location or in your home. Even if you think to continue your business from your home, you still need a place where you can meet confidentially with your clients. Nowadays, many lawyers are making use of “Virtual office” for this purpose. Virtual offices are typically established in commercial office part. However, there is an advantage in using virtual office for your firm. You just need to pay for the time you spend in office, which is completely in contrast to paying a flat monthly payment for renting a space. Again, there are some other equipment that you need for your office like a computer, printer, scanner, copier, fax machine, telephone and other furniture.
2) Make sure you, your partners or other associates are sworn into the federal court of in district or region. As federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction over bankruptcy cases, a bankruptcy case cannot be filed in a state court. Therefore, if you or your associates have only been sworn in the state court, you wont be able to file or argue bankruptcy cases in the federal court.
3) Purchase some malpractice insurance, as these will cover bankruptcy proceedings for your firm. These days, most states require law firms to maintain a minimum amount of legal malpractice insurance. Here you should know one thing. Regarding insurance premium, even if you have opted for minimum coverage, the laws that your firm handle on a regular basis will assert the same. Therefore, you need to inform your insurance service provider that your firm is going to practice bankruptcy law. Otherwise, your insurance policy will be of no use.
4) Keep yourself and your associates informed about the latest bankruptcy laws, regulations and procedures. In order to do this, you can attend Continuing Legal Education (CLE) courses on bankruptcy topics or purchase bankruptcy practice guides and books from Westlaw or Lexis Nexis. You can also search the internet to learn about practical bankruptcy case studies and improve your skills.