A typical Chapter 7 in Los Angeles costs $1,850 in attorney fees, plus the $338 court filing fee and two online courses at roughly $15 to $50 each. Chapter 13 is $7,000 in attorney fees under the Central District's court-set schedule, plus a $313 filing fee, with most of the attorney fee paid through the plan rather than before filing.
Every number on one table
These are the fees we publish, and they're the fees we charge. The Chapter 7 figure is for a typical no-asset consumer case. A business, many assets or a prior filing gets a higher quote, in writing, before any work starts.
| Item | Chapter 7 | Chapter 13 | When it's paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attorney fee | $1,850 flat | $7,000 ($8,500 with a business) | Ch. 7 before filing; Ch. 13 mostly through the plan |
| Court filing fee | $338 | $313 | At filing, or in up to four installments over 120 days |
| Credit counseling course | $15–$50 | $15–$50 | Before filing; certificate good for 180 days |
| Debtor education course | $15–$50 | $15–$50 | After filing, before discharge |
| Chapter 13 trustee's fee | n/a | A percentage of each plan payment | Inside the plan, set by the trustee |
| Typical total before filing | Roughly $2,200 | Roughly $1,300–$2,400 | Payment plans of 2–4 months are routine for Chapter 7 |
Chapter 7: why the fee is paid before the case is filed
A Chapter 7 discharge wipes out debts that existed on the filing date, and an unpaid attorney fee is one of them. That's why the fee is paid before filing, and why the arrangement isn't ours to change. What we can do is spread it. Most clients pay the $1,850 over two to four months while we gather documents, and we file the day the last payment clears.
The flat fee covers the petition and schedules, the means test, the exemption planning, the 341 meeting with Naomi on the Zoom call, the first reaffirmation agreement, and every trustee request through discharge. The line-by-line is on what Chapter 7 costs in Los Angeles.
One more thing about the pre-filing period. Don't pay the fee by taking a cash advance on a card you're about to discharge. The trustee reads the statements, and that advance is exactly the kind of thing they look for.
Chapter 13: why most of it goes through the plan
The Central District's judges set a no-look Chapter 13 fee under the Rights and Responsibilities Agreement, RARA. Since May 2024 that's $7,000 for a consumer case and $8,500 where a business is involved. No-look means the court approves it without a fee application, provided the attorney signs on to a long list of duties that run through the whole plan.
We typically collect $1,000 to $2,000 before filing. The trustee pays us the balance out of your monthly plan payments, ahead of the unsecured creditors. So the fee is built into a number you're already paying, and you don't need $7,000 in the bank to stop a foreclosure. What Chapter 13 costs, and why most of it is paid through the plan shows how that lands in a real budget.
The court's fees, waivers and installments
The clerk charges $338 to open a Chapter 7 and $313 for a Chapter 13, and those numbers are the same in the Roybal building downtown, in Woodland Hills, in Santa Ana, in Riverside and in Santa Barbara.
If your household income is under 150% of the federal poverty guidelines, a Chapter 7 filer can ask the court to waive the fee entirely. We prepare that application when it fits, and it's granted more often than people expect. If you don't qualify for a waiver, the court will accept up to four installments within 120 days of filing. Chapter 13 filers can't get a waiver but can use installments. Filing fees, fee waivers and payment plans covers the forms and the income cutoffs.
The two courses
Federal law requires two short online courses. The first, credit counseling, has to be finished before filing, and the certificate has to be dated within 180 days before the petition date. The second, debtor education, is taken after filing and before discharge. Skip the second one and the discharge doesn't issue; we've seen cases closed without a discharge over a $20 course.
Each runs roughly an hour and costs about $15 to $50 from an approved provider. We'll tell you which provider we use and when to take each one. Details are on credit counseling and debtor education courses.
What the flat fee does not cover
Some things can't be priced in advance because they depend on what a creditor or trustee does after filing. We quote them separately, in writing, before the work.
- Adversary proceedings (a lawsuit inside the case, such as a student loan hardship complaint or a creditor's fraud objection)
- Contested motions, including motions to avoid a judgment lien, which are quoted on their own
- Converting a case from one chapter to the other
- Amendments after filing caused by information we weren't given before filing
- Reaffirmation hearings beyond the first one
In a typical no-asset Chapter 7, none of these come up. When one does, it's usually because something was left off the petition, which is the strongest argument for telling your lawyer everything.
What cheap costs
You can find a $500 Chapter 7 in Los Angeles. Some are petition preparers, who by law can't give legal advice and can't appear at your 341 meeting. Some are volume offices where the attorney on the petition has never spoken to you. The cases we get asked to fix from those shops have the same mistakes: wrong exemption system, a tax refund nobody planned for, a reaffirmation that put a $14,000 car loan back on the client for no reason.
Our fee buys one attorney, a Certified Specialist in Bankruptcy Law, who prepares your case and sits in on your 341 meeting herself. Choosing the chapter is the first decision, and Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 explains how we make it. Our Beverly Hills bankruptcy practice quotes the fee on the first call, and if we tell you not to file, that call costs nothing.
Clients ask me, gently, whether they can pay the last $600 of the fee after we file. The answer is no, and it isn't stubbornness. The day the petition hits the docket, any money you owe me becomes a debt in the case, and I'd be discharging my own invoice. So we wait. Two more weeks, sometimes six. In the meantime we're gathering statements and I'm answering the questions people are embarrassed to ask, and by the time the last payment clears the petition is ready to go the same afternoon.
Questions people ask about this
Is the $1,850 really the whole attorney fee for Chapter 7?
For a typical no-asset consumer case, yes. If your case involves a business, unusual assets or a prior filing, Naomi quotes a higher figure in writing before any work starts. Adversary proceedings and contested motions are always separate.
Can I pay the bankruptcy fee in installments?
For Chapter 7, yes, over two to four months before filing, since the fee has to be paid in full before the petition goes in. For Chapter 13, most of the fee is paid through the plan by the trustee. The court's filing fee can also be split into up to four installments.
Can I get the court filing fee waived?
In Chapter 7, if your household income is under 150% of the federal poverty guidelines. The court grants these regularly in the Central District. Chapter 13 has no waiver, but installments are allowed.
Are there any hidden costs?
The two required courses, roughly $15 to $50 each, are paid to an outside provider. Adversary proceedings, contested motions, conversions and post-filing amendments caused by undisclosed information are quoted separately. Nothing is billed without a written quote first.
Why is Chapter 13 so much more expensive than Chapter 7?
It isn't paid the same way. The $7,000 is spread over a 36 or 60 month plan and paid by the trustee out of your monthly payment. A Chapter 13 lawyer is also on the case for years, handling plan confirmation, modifications and creditor motions, which is why the court set the figure where it did.
Talk it through with the attorney
Call (310) 555-0184 or book a free thirty-minute video consultation and you'll leave with your exact fee, in writing, and a payment schedule that fits the months before filing.