Can I have a refund for a cancelled bankruptcy filing?

It depends on the agreement you had with the attorney. This isn't really a bankruptcy question. It's a contracts question. If your contract gives you the right to a refund then the money is owed; if not then no. If there is no written agreement or no mention of refunds in your agreement then you could have some options because the contract is with an attorney. In California all client fee agreements over $500 MUST be in writing. If your attorney is violating State Bar rules, he/she has enough to be worried about to want to give you your refund and move on. Just be aware the rules are different for each state (and i don't know if you have a written agreement or simply an oral one.) I would recommend going to the Bar website for whichever state you are in. just googling "_ _ state bar association" There should be a client dispute hotline and they will give you some information/leverage in negotiating with your current attorney.

It depends upon what work he did and what the agreement is. However, the local disciplinary authority will probably have something to say about this.

Not likely if fees were earned per agreement.

It seems that you have been overcharged. You should either try fee arbitration through the county or contact the state bar.

You should read the contract you had with your previous attorney. If you paid on a flat fee, it probably contains a provision saying that he owes you nothing if you cancel the relationship. If he was working on an hourly basis, you should have invoices for the hours he worked totaling at least the $2,000 you paid him. If there is no contract you have grounds to sue him (and possibly get him disbarred). Same if he did not follow the strictures of the contract in denying you your refund.

It is incorrect to say nothing was done. The case may not have been filed but you received the time and advice of an attorney. An attorney sells time and advice. The attorney sells a service not a product. You paid him for time and advice over 6 months. He was serving you when he responded to your phone call 5 times. He was serving you when he organized your information in his office and entered the financial information into his data system. Many things happen in an attorney's office that you don't see in preparation of a case to be filed. The fact that you moved is not the fault of the attorney. The attorney is entitled to be paid. Whether it is fair to keep all of the $2,000.00 is a different matter.

Read the contract you signed. If it does not say "non-refundable", then it is not. Even if it does, then you may still be entitled to a partial refund. If the money you paid was intended to include your filing fee, then you are absolutely entitled to receive that back. The attorney was going to have to spend it anyway. If the amount of the fee is entirely disproportionate to the amount of work the attorney actually did on the case, then even if the contract says non-refundable, you may still be entitled to at least some of the money back. My suggestion is that you do all of the following: 1. Read the fee agreement you signed. If you do not have a copy, get one from the attorney. If he does not give it to you, he is breaking the rules of the bar. 2. After you read the contract, if it does not say non-refundable, then demand back your entire fee, pointing out the issue of the filing fee and also the issue of the work that was not done. What you paid is called an "advance fee". The attorney cannot keep an advance fee if the work contemplated was not performed. If it says non-refundable, ask your attorney for a statement of the work done, that is, what was done, by whom and how much time was involved. Remind the attorney that, even if the contract says non-refundable, then he cannot keep a fee which is wholly disproportionate to the work done and therefore he has a responsibility to tell you what he has done so a judgement can be made. 3. If after doing #1 and #2, you have not reached an agreement about how much of the fee the attorney may keep and how much to refund to you, then you should apply for fee arbitration. Contact the State Bar of California (www.calbar.ca.gov). Tell them where you live, where the attorney practices, what kind of work the attorney was hired to do and, of course, that you have a fee dispute. Be sure to explain that this is not a complaint of misconduct, but a fee dispute. It is misconduct only if the attorney loses and then refuses to pay. The Bar will then either explain how to open a case with them or who to contact to open a case with a local fee arbitration dispute service. You will be directed to information on how the process works and what to do once the case has been decided. In doing #2, make sure the attorney knows that you will go to fee arbitration.

It is a contract violation dispute. File a civil suit.

Check with the State Bar in the state where the attorney is licenses. They might have a fee arbitration process. Most attorneys do not like to have the State Bar involved in their business. That might give you some leverage. Also, you have a legal right to sue anyone who has not performed as provided by the contract.

The attorney would be allowed to keep the money he has earned. How much was earned is debatable. There is more work that goes into a case than debtors generally expect. You could choose to go to small claims court to try to get the portion you are due back (if any) but you would have to go back in-state to do that. I would suggest indicating you want a portion of the fee back from the attorney and see if you can work something out. If not, you'll want to weigh out your options of trying a lawsuit when you aren't in state any longer.

Whether you are eligible for a refund or not depends on the engagement agreement you signed with your attorney. You need to review it and it should address refund policies. My agreement does include a policy regarding non-refundablity of fees. As to your statement that "Nothing was ever done", I think you vastly underestimate the time and effort it takes to review and prepare documents BEFORE ever filing the petition. You are paying for expertise and advice and if you spoke with your attorney on five separate occasions, I am sure he or she provided both. Bankruptcy is a process like building a home, your attorney worked on the foundation and started building the structure, the house may not have been finished but important work was done.

Ask him for an itemized bill. If he refuses, get in touch with your State Bar Association ethics committee and file a complaint.