Hope Law made filing bankruptcy easy, stress free and affordable. No frills no hassle

Bankruptcy isn't fun, not for anyone. There are so many feelings and emotions involved, even as one nears the point where they begin considering this "last resort option". Not only that, but it can be extremely hard to even know where to honestly begin reviewing your options! This is because of the immense haze, depression, and overall mental fog and fatigue that comes hand in hand with being in such a bad financial position. It's tough to step back and look at things from a clear-headed point of view... especially when every day feels like you're ... DROWNING. This was me about a year and a half ago... Stressed. Depressed. Ashamed. Stressed some more. Living a day-to-day that was mostly spent trying to hide the truth (from myself and others). The truth being the dire situation I had now found myself. A deep dark hole that I had slowly crawled into, created by decisions I made over the period of many years of course. My daily life at that time was one of dodging debt collectors, using payday loan places to pay past due bills, not paying bills in general... even selling things on FB and Craigslist just to "get by". Like a super shitty groundhog day that keeps repeating itself, and during this phase it can certainly start to feel as if there is NO HOPE. That no one can save you, not even yourself. However, this was just another LIE I was telling myself. It's one that "fear-brain" preaches to us pretty constantly because at this point it's was now pretty much running my life. The days get darker and the hole gets deeper. Time seems to go even faster and bills seem to be due sooner. Past due notices, repossession threats, letters and lawsuits in the mail, and a phone that you don't even want to have near you anymore because of the endless calls from robots, collectors, agencies, etc... Lucky (and life-changing) for me; my personal "breakdown" moment came in the form of a letter in the mail. It was from a bank that had now owned my truck and a huge credit line I used with my business (which was now very OUT OF BUSINESS). They weren't the only ones wanting to go courtroom with me, but they were going to take away my only transportation at that time, and seek to start docking my wages to make up for the $30,000 or so dollars I owed them... That day, at some point in the day I actually asked myself -- "Where am I really going here? What are my real options? How might this affect my life, both now and down the road?" etc.. Then, a little later that day I made an appointment that definitely altered the course of my life. Truly. I set fear aside just long enough to attempt to change course, and get help from someone who can (and did) answer these questions. Now, this type of change doesn't happen in a day, but I can say for sure this is what Michelle did for me, and with me. Even in the first sitting my whole perspective, attitude, and feelings about things started to slowly shift. Her offices are small, and comfortable. I didn't feel intimidated at all, or out of place. Even after a few minutes of sitting with her I could feel tension begin to ease. She answered everything so clearly, and I could sense her understanding and empathy for my situation. Also, that she was approaching this from a place of objectivity, reason, and absolutely NO JUDGEMENT. After a few discussions, we began to really move through my options, all of my debts, and the process involved with filing the actual bankruptcy. And when I say move through, she really does do EVERYTHING. All she needed was info on my debtors, and last papertrail, etc, and then she handled them, ALL OF THEM. She quite literally got them all off of my back within what seemed like a few weeks, and this alone was enough to change my daily reality. It's incredible what that barrage of collections does to our mental health, etc. Michelle rounded up amounts, spoke to the right people, and before I knew it we were in a courtroom negotiating my way "out". She sat down with the creditors in a special meeting, and was able to find a way that I not only kept my truck, but developed a special pay plan where I was to pay back only a percentage of what I owed - all with small payments over the course of five years. Also, her rate on the filing was less than I thought it would be. Very reasonable. In the past year my life has still been up and down, but I have been able to finally CLIMB OUT. I have found actually happiness and joy again; enjoying days where I am not haunted by the nightmare I had previously created for myself. Not only that, but she has still been there for me with help and guidance whenever needed (which has been more than a few times!) She always responds quickly, and with such honesty and sincerity. I have never felt put off or like I was a nuisance in any way. So yes, there is HOPE (sorry, pun intended! ;) and since Yelp is now cutting my little novel review off (word limit!) I'll end with a few simple ones from the heart... THANK YOU MICHELLE! =) read more

I can't say enough good things about Michelle and Hope Law Office. I had called two other law firms beforehand and they never even returned my call. I felt like I would get lost in the impersonal mega-firms and decided not to fight for their business. I always try to support a woman-owned business whenever I can and after reading great reviews about her practice on Yelp, I reached out to her. Michelle was so compassionate and caring about my difficult situation, it was evident I had made the right decision right away. I got a very personal level of highly-attentive service that I would never have received at one of the big box firms and could not be more pleased with my decision to choose Hope Law. read more

They charge less than other attoneys because there is no additional staff. I would saynits a so so experience. They never answer their phone directly and utilize email mostly. Gets the job done though. read more

Being a lesbian in the south can be dicey. Fitting the stereotype of what a lesbian is "supposed" to look like, even more so. Attorney Michelle Thomas-Smith of Hope Law Offices did not even blink twice when she inquired about my ex-husband and I corrected her with something like, "Nope, ex-wife." Having to file bankruptcy was humiliating for me. After fifteen minutes with Michelle I started to lose that feeling. She was so reassuring, down to earth and has a great sense of humor. By the time I left her office, I felt like I could breathe again. She also had me feeling like I could hold my head up and not feel ashamed. I called Michelle, a lot, usually in a panic over something I forgot to tell her or a creditor I had forgotten about. Either she answered the phone herself or you will get her voice mail. No robo-voice telling me to push one for this or eight for that. If I happen to get her voicemail, Michelle always called back within twenty-four hours. Whatever the issue, Michelle always left me feeling like she actually cared how I felt and that things were going to be okay. We never ended a phone call with me feeling like the pain, let's say in the neck, that I felt like when I called. At the same time I was going through the bankruptcy, my mother was dying of cancer. Michelle always asked how Ma, Dad, my kids, and myself were holding up. If you think you need to talk to an attorney about bankruptcy call Michelle Thomas-Smith at Hope Law Office. She asked me why I had chosen her - my answer, I prefer to support business women. I asked her, "why Hope Law Office"? She said, by the time most people are in need of an attorney they have lost all hope and she wanted to be a part of restoring that. Michelle certainly did that and so much more, for me. --AnnaMarie read more

All those letters claiming to be the best, yet sounding so threatening as if we didn't chose them, our lives would be even more messed up. A consultation with one that left us feeling hopeless, dumb and insignificant, yet costing so much we couldn't even consider doing what we thought was best. And then a very professional, kind and almost sympathetic notice in the mail from Attorney Michelle Thomas-Smith of Hope Law Offices arrived in our mailbox. I instantly got a great "vibe" from it and we called. How lucky we are to have made the choice to try and correct our mistakes one more time. When we met with Attorney Michelle, we were anxious and nervous, that was until we were able to sit down with her at our consultation. We not only told her what we were going through, we told her a little about ourselves, like, how we met, how we ended up in Tennessee, our family and just life in general. She never made us feel insignificant or judged us in any way. She worked with us on our schedule (we work third shift and sleep during the day). She explained everything so thoroughly, we literally had few questions. And when it came down to price, she worked with us on that as well. I highly recommend using Attorney Michelle Thomas-Smith of Hope Law Offices. My husband and I can't thank her enough! Thanks, Michelle!!! read more