NM Bankruptcy Law

The phone wasn't ringing off the hook, but ...

“By the time the clock struck 10 a.m., we had a line of clients out the door. By the end of the fair we had served nearly 200 clients in a span of about three hours.”

This was Saturday’s free legal fair that I posted about previously. As of Saturday, it was the 2nd largest event in New Mexico — even more than at Albuquerque’s last event! (They saw 175 people in 4 hours.  However, Albuquerque is having this year’s event today, and they may beat their earlier and Santa Fe’s current record.)

It’s a mixed thing, though –such a great need for legal assistance and such limited resources people have to help solve some really serious problems.

Who says lawyers don’t have a sense of humor?

NOLO has made me laugh for many years!

Attorney Joke

Q: Have you heard about the lawyers’ word processor?

A:  No matter what font you select, everything come out in fine print.

The United States Bankruptcy Court issued this announcement a short while ago, concerning next week if there is a government “shut down” at midnight tonight:

The United States Bankruptcy Court and the United States District Court for the District of New Mexico will be open with no change in hours, hearing schedules, or services for the week of April 11, 2011, whether or not there is a federal government lapse in current fiscal year appropriations (commonly called a government “shutdown”).  If such a shutdown occurs and continues for an extended period, an adjustment to Court services may be required.  We will keep you informed via this listserv and on the Court’s web site as needed.

The United States Trustee Program has asked us to send out the following information:
In the event there is a lapse in federal funding, effective Monday, April 11, all offices within the United States Trustee Program will be temporarily closed.  Office operations will resume once Congress enacts a 2011 appropriations bill or a continuing resolution.  We apologize for the inconvenience.

Meetings of creditors currently scheduled will proceed at all locations.

I’ll keep you informed as I learn more.

Written by Santa Fe Bankruptcy Lawyer, Gini Nelson.

Feeling Lucky?

Really, don’t count on it. Changing your financial situation is usually a matter of changing long-held, little-considered ideas and habits. And overspending during the holidays is one of the big habits most of us give in to. But in all economic times, not just this one, spending what you cannot afford and failing to save what you can save puts you and your family at risk.

In my bankruptcy practice here in Santa Fe and northern New Mexico, there’s what I see as a “holiday lull” — fewer consultations right up and through the holidays, then, seemingly as the bills from the holiday spending start coming in later in January, more people calling to set appointments to learn how bankruptcy might help them.

This article by Ramit Sethi does a good job of telling us how to do better with our financial habits.

Nov. 30th NYT Bucks (Making the Most of your Money) Blog
November 30, 2010, 12:03 pm
How to Improve Your Financial Willpower

Ramit Sethi runs the Web site I Will Teach You to Be Rich. Two years ago I commented on a series he billed as a 30 Day Challenge to save $1,000.

Here’s the link to the first: Tip #1: Pack lunches for the rest of the week. As you the pace into the heart of the holidays grows frantic, why not review and remind yourself of thoughts and actions  you can take that my help you and your family more, in the longer run, than that new … however bright and shiny as it is!