I’m a bankruptcy attorney, but the firm I work for tends to frown upon me taking on cases that involve any family members or friends.  They say it’s a big conflict of interests and I actually have to agree, though I don’t like it.  I should still be able to help out my family and friends if they need me to.  After all, I wouldn’t be a bankruptcy attorney if not for them.  If any of them has to file and suffer through Chapter 7 bankruptcy, I’d like to at least offer them advice and I actually do in some cases.  I just let them know that they shouldn’t go around telling anyone else that I did.  If any of them actually has to go to court, I have a short list of lawyers that I know that I can recommend them to.  I know all these lawyers or met them in law school.  They’ll take care of my family and friends just like if they recommend me I would do the same for them.  I’ve also got a short of lawyers I’ve met through the years I can recommend my family and friends to if they need some other type of legal representation.  Like any other job, a lot of it is networking and keeping up a good reputation with the right people.