The undue hardship must be severe. An adversary proceeding is commenced with the filing of a complaint.

Answer Applies to: Georgia
Replied: 11/9/2011

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Let me explain your problem from an attorney's point of view. I mean no disrespect, but If I were a doctor, your question would be translated as "I'm in the middle of doing my own heart operation and need to actually hire a doctor now to help me with a blood clot I found in a lung." No professional wants to be held responsible for a case that fails because of a screw-up that occurred before he came on to the case. Our malpractice providers would never forgive us. The words undue hardship and the reference to an adversary proceeding may suggest you are trying to discharge a student loan. Because of the extreme difficulty of that undertaking most attorneys - if they consider it at all - spend a significant amount of time preparing proof prior to filing the case, or advise the client that they cannot do it. .Your situation is akin to deciding to run a marathon on your own, wearing combat boots and ankle weights instead of running shoes, and then asking if another runner will pick you up and carry you across the finish line. I know many people try to give the impression that bankruptcy is simple and that it can be done without a lawyer. Just fill in some forms, they tell you. Based on my practice, I believe those "easy" cases are the exception, not the rule. You sound like you finally realize you are in way over your head. I suspect you are, but we don't give legal opinions here. As a general matter, an adversary proceeding is a full scale litigation lawsuit held within a bankruptcy case - there is a separate legal fee, and court fee, and the case gets a separate case number and subheading under the main case in the caption. It costs as much as non-bankruptcy litigation and is usually billed by the hour. Learning how to do this right is why we go to law school, and even then it's not that easy. I suspect you had unrealistic expectations about the bankruptcy process and the amount of help the court would give you, but there is a saying about horses and open barndoors that seems to apply here. I am truly sorry.

Answer Applies to: New Jersey
Replied: 11/7/2011

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I'm not sure why you would want to file your own adversary proceeding unless you are trying to discharge student loan debt. Most attorneys that do this would require that they handle the entire case. I'm sure a web search of attorneys in your area should help.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 11/7/2011

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Without knowing whom you would bring the Adversary proceeding it is impossible to know whether you can bring an Adversary Proceeding. The general Rule is that if the Trustee will not bring the action, you can bring it yourself. Don't do it without counsel.

Answer Applies to: New York
Replied: 11/7/2011

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It can be done by an individual but it is pretty complicated stuff. If you are convinced that you need to do it yourself, there are form books available at local law schools which would show you what it should look like. Any attorney can do it for you and their response to you may be a polite way of telling you that you do not have a case. I do that sort of work, although I'm not soliciting yours, and I know other attorney's that, likewise, will do the adversary alone. Money talks when dealing with attorneys.

Answer Applies to: Texas
Replied: 11/7/2011

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I think you are going to have problems finding an attorney who is going to step into do an adversary procedure when you are representing yourself up to now. You might check with your trustee to see if they have list of attorneys they might recommend. Our malpractice insurance really doesn't like to see us take pro se cases once they have caused a problem and suddenly jump as the attorney, it is like buying trouble.

Answer Applies to: Michigan
Replied: 11/7/2011

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I'm not sure from your description what you are trying to do though I assume it is related to student loans. You do not want to file an adversary without an attorney so I would continue to call local attorney's. If they say that they do not do adversary's, I would ask them who does. You may also want to check the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorney's which lists attorney's in the state who are members.

Answer Applies to: Minnesota
Replied: 11/6/2011

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You should have an attorney, but if you cannot get one than call your courts and ask if they have "pro se" forms for you to file on your own.

Answer Applies to: New York
Replied: 11/5/2011

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Find an attorney who does these matters to help you file it.

Answer Applies to: Michigan
Replied: 11/4/2011

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Any lawyer who says that has not clue about what bankruptcy is really all about. Keep trying. Try and find a lawyer who knows how to litigate. m*

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 11/4/2011

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Adversary proceedings are lawsuits filed in a bankruptcy. One type that a debtor might file is to determine that a student loan should be discharged as an undue hardship. It is best to employ an attorney to do this. If a bankruptcy attorney does not want to do this it might be that it isn't a good idea, that is, there may be little chance of success.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 11/4/2011

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There are many attorneys in Denver who practice adversary law in the bankruptcy courts. You need to find one. Don't even try to do it by yourself.

Answer Applies to: Colorado
Replied: 11/4/2011

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You file an adversary proceeding in much the same way you file any other federal court complaint. You must state the parties, state facts and allegations, then identify causes of action, and submit a prayer for relief.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 11/4/2011

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An adversary proceeding for hardship sounds like you are trying not to pay a student loan. Since that is almost never granted (essentially you need to have no hope of any income for life), the reason you can't find counsel is likely that they don't see merit in your case.

Answer Applies to: Georgia
Replied: 11/4/2011

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There are several problems that you face. The first is that it is unclear what sort of adversary you are seeking to prosecute, but your recitation of undue hardship leads me to believe that you are looking to discharge student loan debt. This sort of litigation is complex and difficult. Further, if you have the ability to hire an attorney, you probably do not have a sufficient hardship to qualify for a discharge of student loan debt. As a result, most of the successful student loan adversary cases are filed by Legal Aid attorneys. If this is your situation, you may want to seek representation from Legal Aid.

Answer Applies to: Colorado
Replied: 11/4/2011

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It seems like you are confused as to what an adversary proceeding is.... That is a lawsuit in bankruptcy and it is usually when a creditor thinks you committed fraud and does not want the debt discharged. Therefore, it has nothing to do with undue hardship in your own bankruptcy case. Most bankruptcy attorney don't want to get involved in cases that were filed without an attorney because there are limitations on fees and need sometimes to get court approval of fees plus it is more work than taking the case from the beginning. However, you might be asking the attorneys the wrong question and there might be a misunderstanding as to what you need.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 11/4/2011

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You need to hire a qualified attorney. Forget about doing it yourself. Most bankruptcy lawyers do not like bankruptcy litigation and will refuse to litigate complex issues that arise in Bank-ruptcy Court, such as proving undue hardship in a student loan case. Proving undue hardship in a student loan case is very difficult. You will lose in a majority of the cases unless you have a handicap or other physical or psychiatric impairment that will prevent you from obtaining meaningful employment for the rest of your life. They are also very expensive - between $5,000 and $20,000, depending on the complexity of the case. Most debtors do not have the financial resources to pay the legal fees to litigate a student loan discharge cases.

Answer Applies to: Texas
Replied: 11/4/2011

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This is a lawsuit that would probably go to trial, so the attorney's fee could run thousands of dollars. If you can't afford this, I know from time to time big law firms will have their new attorneys handle this type of case as a training exercise in federal litigation.

Answer Applies to: Minnesota
Replied: 11/4/2011

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An Adversary Proceeding is not for the purpose you intend to use it for. There is no right to an attorney for bankruptcy and the best suggestion is to look for an attorney who will pick up your case. There are some who will.

Answer Applies to: California
Replied: 11/4/2011

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