Here's an article from the New York Times that sounds disturbing: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/21/business/blacks-face-bias-in-bankruptcy-study-suggests.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=bankruptcy%20study%20chapter&st=cse. The article alleges that Blacks are being steered into Chapter 13 bankruptcies by their attorneys. For those of you who do not know, attorneys generally charge much higher fees for a Chapter 13 bankrupty than a Chapter 7. I certainly hope members of the bar are putting their desire for higher fees aside and properly counseling all people who come to us for advice.
People in financial trouble are very vulnerable. A lawyer's job (duty, really) is to provide the best advice possible considering the client's circumstance. In a bankruptcy consultation (and I do a ton of them), I am always thinking Chapter 7 first. I my opinion, it is the type of bankruptcy that generally provides the best and quickest relief. Sometimes a client's situation requires my thinking to shift towards Chapter 13. After reading the New York Times article, it appears that some of my colleagues may be doing the opposite.