Sheereen E. McNair

I started Middleton Legal because I kept meeting women who were quietly carrying the entire weight of a household, getting hit with garnishments and lawsuits, and convinced they could not afford a lawyer. They were right that bankruptcy is hard to talk about. They were wrong that they had to figure it out alone. My practice is consumer bankruptcy for Maryland and Florida. I help people stop wage garnishment, end the foreclosure clock, settle the lawsuits, and walk out of court with a real plan for the next six months.

What I practice

I handle Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 cases for individuals and families. Chapter 7 wipes qualifying unsecured debt and gives you a clean restart. Chapter 13 sets up a court-approved repayment plan that protects your home, your car, and your dignity while you catch up on what matters. Most of my clients come in carrying some combination of credit card debt, medical bills, a paycheck that is already being garnished, a car payment that is behind, or a mortgage that the servicer is threatening to accelerate. That is the work.

What makes my practice different

I run a small, focused firm on purpose. You work directly with me from the first call through your discharge. There is no handoff to a paralegal halfway through, and you will not be wondering who is actually running your case. When you call, you reach a person. When you email, you get a real answer, not a form response.

I do not use scare tactics, and I do not rush you into a chapter that does not fit. The first conversation we have is about your goals: keeping the house, stopping the garnishment, protecting a co-signer, saving a small business, or just being able to sleep again. The strategy follows that goal. If Chapter 7 is the right tool, we file Chapter 7. If Chapter 13 protects more of what matters to you, we file Chapter 13. If bankruptcy is not the right answer at all, I will tell you that too.

You will get straight answers, not legal jargon. You will get a lawyer who explains every step. You will get a fighter in your corner on the parts of the case that need one, including objections to claims, lift stay defense, and motions to recover wages that were garnished after filing. You will also get someone who refuses to shame you for any decision that got you here.

How working with me looks

Most cases start with a free consultation. We walk through the debt, the income, the assets, and the timeline together. If we move forward, you get a clear retainer, a flat fee for the chapter you are filing, and a checklist of what I need from you to file. From there, we move at the speed of your case. If a garnishment is hitting on Friday, we file by Thursday. If you have six weeks to gather documents, we use the six weeks.

After we file, the automatic stay stops the calls, the garnishments, the lawsuits, and most collection activity overnight. I prepare you for your 341 meeting of creditors, I attend it with you, and I handle the trustee communication so you do not have to. After your discharge, I walk you through what to do in the first ninety days to start rebuilding credit, savings, and peace of mind.

A note on bankruptcy

There is nothing shameful about using a legal tool the way it was designed to be used. The bankruptcy code exists because the country decided, a long time ago, that responsible people sometimes need a structured way to recover. Most of the clients I see waited too long before reaching out because they were told, by family or by themselves, that bankruptcy was a moral failure. It is not. It is a structured second chance, and using it correctly can shorten the recovery curve by years.

If you are ready to stop the bleeding and rebuild your credit, your savings, and your peace of mind, I would like to help.

How to start

Call 240-896-3253 or visit middletonbankruptcy.com to schedule a free consultation. I serve clients across Maryland and Florida, with virtual consultations available.