Debt relief lawyers typically specialize in assisting their clients with managing, reducing, or eliminating their debt. The laws governing debt reduction strategies vary by jurisdiction. As such, the activities of debt relief lawyers may vary widely depending on the laws in the area where a debtor lives. In many places, a debt relief lawyer may specialize in negotiating partial or total debt forgiveness on behalf of his or her clients. In other cases, this type of attorney may advocate bankruptcy as the best solution for dealing with unmanageable debt.
Many people who find themselves in a situation where they cannot manage their debts may attempt to negotiate with creditors on their own. Although this strategy works for many people, some individuals are nervous about approaching their creditors. They may then seek out the services of debt relief lawyers who are experienced in this type of negotiation. In some cases, creditors may be more responsive to a communication from an attorney than from a debtor. In other cases, the attorney, as a third party to the situation, is simply less emotionally involved in the case and is thus better able to negotiate an acceptable compromise for both creditor and debtor.
One advantage to working with debt relief lawyers is that these attorneys are often able to advise creditors about their rights and options under the law. For example, some debtors may be so deeply in debt that it is unlikely that they will ever be able to repay their creditors. Debt relief lawyers are often in a good position to evaluate the debtor’s situation and recommend bankruptcy as a possible way to eliminate the debt and start fresh. These attorneys may also represent the debtor against collection agencies who are harassing the debtor or threatening legal action.
Some debt relief lawyers do not negotiate debt settlements, but instead simply specialize in bankruptcy. As bankruptcy laws can be complex, many people choose to work with bankruptcy attorneys so that they can more easily manage the process. In some cases, financial experts strongly advise consumers to seek advice from multiple sources when trying to figure out what to do about their unmanageable debt. They will caution debtors from relying solely on the advice of debt relief lawyers when it may be possible for the consumer to negotiate a repayment plan through credit counseling or on his own by speaking to his creditors directly.
