Please note that “petition preparers” and “document preparers” are not authorized to give debtors or other parties legal advice. This means they cannot tell debtors what documents are appropriate to file or what information legally is appropriate to include in the documents. If you need legal advice, please visit the Court’s pages to Find an Attorney, or the page for the Debtor’s Assistance Project.
A preparer’s role is solely that of a typing service; they can transcribe information their clients provide and they can charge a nominal fee. In the District of Maryland, the maximum fee for this service is $125.00, unless the preparer provides additional documentation (Form B2800) to justify their excess fees.
If a preparer charges excess fees without justification, or otherwise violates Bankruptcy laws, the Court may issue an injunction directing them to stop working as a petition preparer. An injunction is a court order preventing one or more named parties from taking some action. For a list of injunctions issued by the District of Maryland against specific petition preparers, visit the Bankruptcy Petition Preparer Injunctions page.