There's a lot of talk among attorneys about an expected flood of business bankruptcy filings resulting from the COVID-19 economic slowdown.

But Howard Rubin, a Texas commercial bankruptcy attorney, hasn't seen it yet, even though he noted this could change by July.

But Rubin, shareholder in Kessler & Collins in Dallas, said that debt attorneys who do bankruptcies have seen little impact to their current case load, which means their incomes haven't suffered as much as other lawyers during the COVID-19 economic shock.

As an attorney who handles debt matters, Rubin  is one of a select group of U.S. lawyers who seem to be weathering the COVID-19 economic disruptions better than others, according to a new survey of attorneys nationwide.

ALM Media, which publishes Law.com, conducted a survey of attorneys nationwide between April 1 to 23 to ask how the coronavirus outbreak has impacted their income or revenue, how their new case filings have changed, and what's been happening with new clients seeking representation. The 292 lawyers who took the survey came from California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Texas, New York, Pennsylvania and other states.

Aside from debt counsel, contract attorneys also seem to be the best off, compared to other practice areas.

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Fee Structure

As for consumer and commercial debt attorneys, 47% of the 17 respondents said their income has stayed the same, while 41% reported a decrease and 6% said they had seen increased income. Two-thirds of those who did lose money quantified the loss at less than 20% of earnings.

View the results:

Graphic: David Palmer/ALM

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