Expert: Mark J. Markus- California Bankruptcy Attorney - 9/16/2009

Question
Mr. Markus,

In 1997 my Citibank credit card was cancelled.  I continued to pay Citibank until June of 2005. The remaining balance at that time was approx. $3,000. I stopped making payments and heard nothing more about the matter until a scavanger debt collection agency contacted me in February of 2009 informing me that they purchased the debt and that I now owed them over $12,000.  They filed suit against me in June (3 days before the statute of limitations expired).  I (without an attorney) answered their suit and payed the court filing fees.  They now want me to answer ingerrogatories and I really don't think I can continue without an attorney, which I can't afford at this point.  My only option seems to be to file for bankruptcy.  I lost my job in April and have since gone through all of my savings.  I'm receiving unemployment and my only asset is my car. I have no other debts. Should I file for bankruptcy now (before the case goes to trial) or should I wait for the court to hand down a judgemet against me and then file for bankruptcy?  Will bankruptcy protect me against this scavanger debt collection agency and their attorney's fees?  What is the best way to file for bankruptcy without an attorney?  Thank you for any advice you can give me.

-Mike

Answer
I don't think the timing matters, except that if they get a judgment against you before you file, they might be able to seize funds in your bank account, but that's probably not a huge risk.  You should definitely use an attorney if at all possible.

http://www.bklaw.com/