Kaufman, Englett and Lynd, PLLC (“KEL”) is an Orlando law firm that advertises mortgage foreclosure defense work, among other things. KEL decided to get into the bankruptcy business and is one of the largest volume filers of Chapter 7 bankruptcy petitions in Orlando, Florida. I assume that many of KEL’s clients who could not pay their mortgage are also good candidates for bankruptcy to both protect themselves from deficiency judgments and wipe out other debts related to their financial hardship. It seems good business for KEL to capture the bankruptcy business from their foreclosure defense clients.
There was much scuttlebutt around the bankruptcy court today about a court order which sanctioned KEL by banning them from practicing in bankruptcy court for the Middle District. No bankruptcy filings, no motions, no claims, no nothing. This is a very severe sanction. I have not heard of this court ever banning an attorney from future legal practice before the court.
The order does not describe in detail KEL’s bad behavior. Apparently, KEL, though its attorney William Sanchez, filed a motion in November, 2010, for sanctions against bankruptcy debtors. The court said that “because of numerous missteps and lack of diligence by Mr. Sanchez and his firm” the court has been unable to adjudicate the motion.
I have no personal experience with KEL problems or their practice. I know they have a high-volume bankruptcy operation A few other bankruptcy attorneys I spoke with today stated that KEL typically assigns inexperienced attorneys to bankruptcy cases, , and that these inexperienced attorneys are filing a large number of bankruptcy petitions each month. Inexperienced attorneys, generally, make mistakes in their petitions and in their bankruptcy practice. KEL attorneys must made some serious and repeated mistakes to incite a judge to the point where they have been banned from bankruptcy court.
There is a lesson here for new bankruptcy attorneys. Bankruptcy practice is not as easy as it seems, and certainly, its more difficult than it was before the 2005 bankruptcy law. Federal court judges and bankruptcy trustees do not have much patience with sloppy law practice. Every attorney is inexperienced when he does his first case. By starting with a small volume of cases, and by working initially with a more experience attorney, you can learn things about bankruptcy law which you cannot learn in a book or by reading the bankruptcy rules. Don’t attempt to handle a large volume of cases until you have learned the ropes of bankruptcy law and procedure. Case No. 10-15477
This case isn’t new or genuine to me, i guest something went wrong.
As a newer bankruptcy attorney in Orlando I thank you for the words of advice at the end of this post. Quite a shocking story. I couldn’t find a job out of law school so I started up my own practice. It has been scary trying to learn this all on my own but I think the key is not to take on too much on. One client at a time…
A short conversation can tell you a lot about the attorney you have chosen. You can ask him about his expertise and his working and consultation hours.
Agree, Bankruptcy practice is definitely not easy, especially for inexperienced attorneys.
Hiring an experienced bankruptcy lawyer costs little more (if any) than hiring an inexperienced lawyer. When friends or clients ask me to refer them to a bankruptcy lawyer, I tell them to hire a lawyer with at least ten years’ experience in bankruptcy law. As the volume of your blog indicates, the knowledge of bankruptcy law and procedure, local practice, trustee’s requirements, and applicable state law is substantial.
Judge Olson in the Southern District of Fla. issued a similar sanction against a local firm. He made some incredible findings in the opinion. It reads like no other sanction I have come across. In re Moon Thai & Japanese, Inc. 10-23328 (DE 394)