How have the changes to the bankruptcy laws affected the attorneys who represent the filers?
DELANEY: The practice of law among debtors’ attorneys has dramatically been changed. Lawyers are being held more responsible for the representations made by their clients. There is more scrutiny from the trustee’s office; there is more scrutiny from the courts. The number of [attorneys] representing debtors has decreased. There are more responsibilities, liabilities, possible sanctions against debtors’ attorneys. These lawyers are becoming guarantors of the debtors’ case. The scrutiny places the lawyers in a defense mode they had not experienced before. Thankfully, Judge [Arthur N.] Votolato [the only judge in the Rhode Island district of U.S. Bankruptcy Court] is aware of the duties and responsibilities placed on the bankruptcy practitioners, and he deals with questions involving the representation of their debtors in a very fair manner. But a number of lawyers are no longer taking these cases, and a number of these debtors don’t have the financial means by which to pay the going rate
