Scam alert: Document Preparation Services

     There are a lot of places out there who advertise that they will prepare documents for you to do your own divorce, bankruptcy, or some other legal proceeding. These companies advertise that they are cheeper than going to an attorney and will save you money. They are a scam.
     The way they work is to charge you a couple of hundred dollars (in the case of a recent client of mine $800) to give you the forms which you have to fill out yourself. Then they type it for you. The forms can be obtained for free from most courts, and it doesn't cost hundreds of dollars for someone to type your information.
     The big problem is these services are not attorneys, and if you use one, unless you know the law already (and if that's the case, you wouldn't need the service) you don't know what to do after the forms are filed and still wind up going to an attorney. The only difference is that by that point things will be such a mess that it will cost you more to get out of it than if you went to an attorney in the first place.
     If you have a legal problem, consult an attorney. Never try to do it yourself. If you make a mistake, it not only makes things worse it costs you more in the long run.