You’ve probably realized by now that filing for bankruptcy can be a pretty complicated matter. Still, it’s tempting to try to go through the process by yourself in order to save money.

After all, if you’re considering personal bankruptcy in the first place, you probably don’t have much extra money to be spending on legal fees. With this in mind, should you try to file bankruptcy without a lawyer?

I certainly would not recommend it. Why shouldn’t you try to go it alone in order to save as much money as possible? You are, after all, declaring bankruptcy because your finances are in a mess, right? Well, the truth is that this procedure has become more difficult to accomplish in recent years due to the bankruptcy reform law that was adopted in 2005. The law passed by Congress and signed by President Bush added some restrictions which seek to eliminate abuse of the bankruptcy system.

The means test is probably the most significant change in the bankruptcy law. Its entire goal is to try and make sure that you really need bankruptcy based on your current salary and debt load.

Those with a higher income than the average salary for their state will have to go through some extra steps in order to prove their need for bankruptcy.

You will have to prove that you are unable to pay by showing all your financial documents that describe your income and expenses. There are many technical details involved, and this is why you definitely need a lawyer by your side guiding you through the process.

You may hear from friends or family members that they successfully managed to declare personal bankruptcy without a lawyer. However, chances are that they went through the process a while back. Keep in mind that things have gotten much tougher since 2005 when Congress passed the bankruptcy reform act.

Trying to navigate all the technical details of the bankruptcy code can be very difficult for a layperson. Even lawyers who specialize in bankruptcy have to work hard to keep up with all the latest developments and court rulings regarding personal bankruptcy.

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