Being sued by lawyer for unpaid fees

[cahelp]

Jurisdiction

California

My father and his business partner hired Lawyer X to help represent their business in a legal matter. The suit is still ongoing, but they no longer receive the services because they believe the lawyer wasn't doing a very good job. Of a total of $23000 for services rendered, my father and his partner have paid $9000 of it and have a pending amount of $14000, the amount which he is being sued for.

In the beginning when the suit was filed by Lawyer X, it listed both my father and his partner as the defendant. But somewhere along the way, the partner's name dropped off and now it shows that my only father owes the entire $14000. When looking up the case online, it states

07/10/2015 DISMISSAL WITH PREJUDICE FILED AS TO (Partner Name) AN
INDIVIDUAL ONLY
09/16/2015 REQUEST FOR ENTRY OF DEFAULT RECEIVED (Partner Name) AN
INDIVIDUAL ONLY

My father filed for bankruptcy a few years ago. It's not that he won't pay, he is unable to pay now. The court where the lawyer filed the judgement case says it is not a collections case and has been transferred to another civil court.

Not sure what my father can do now? He can't really afford a lawyer.

 

[army judge]

Not much he CAN do without the assistance of a lawyer.

If the parties were TRUE business partners, you sue one, you sue the entire partnership.

I'm not sure, nor do I know enough to say how the other partner wiggled off the hook.

I suspect they weren't in a legal partnership, just two guys working together.

 

[cahelp]

Not much he CAN do without the assistance of a lawyer.

If the parties were TRUE business partners, you sue one, you sue the entire partnership.

I'm not sure, nor do I know enough to say how the other partner wiggled off the hook.

I suspect they weren't in a legal partnership, just two guys working together.

So what will happen if he does nothing? He already filed bankruptcy years ago (but less than 7 years), has no savings and owns no property.

 

[army judge]

So what will happen if he does nothing? He already filed bankruptcy years ago (but less than 7 years), has no savings and owns no property.

Not much, if he has few assets.

If he received a discharge in Chapter 7 bankruptcy, he has to wait eight years from the date he filed the previous bankruptcy before he can file Chapter 7 again.

That time is fast approaching.

All he needs to do is bide his time, and then he can file BK again.

If his income is from a pension or social security, that is most likely judgment proof.

I'm sure the lawyer will pester him over the next few months.

That comes with the turf.

He can delay the current lawsuit, string out the inevitable, for as long as he can.

He can also motion to get his "partner" back into the lawsuit, as that buys more precious time.

In the end a lien could be placed on his property.

Some people sell their real estate in an effort to thwart the outcome.

Other people place their assets into a family or other trust.

Delay, delay, delay....