John Parkman Harper

I have been helping individuals resolve difficult financial problems for a long time. While attending Washburn School of Law, I worked as a paralegal in the office of a bankruptcy attorney.  Since 2006 I have been actively engaged in the practice of consumer bankruptcy law.

I enjoy working with individuals and helping them get a fresh financial start. So I do that exclusively. I just don’t have much interest in representing large business entities.

Although my office is in Topeka, KS (where the U.S. Bankruptcy Court is located), I help individuals from throughout the State of Kansas. If you call me today, I can generally meet with you tomorrow.

My father, now mostly retired, has practiced law since 1974, so I naturally grew up thinking I wanted to do something else. And for many years I did.

At age 15, three of my friends and I started a punk rock band called The Micronotz. That was our primary extra-curricular activity all through high school and into college. We produced several record albums and a couple of cassettes (if you remember what those are), became regionally well known, and continue to this day to be legends in our own minds. Occasionally, I still play when I can find a group looking for a decent “axman.”

I did find time to graduate from Lawrence High School as a Merit Scholarship Finalist, attended KU on a Merit Scholarship, and ultimately received a degree in English.

Like most aspiring musicians (and English majors), I spent a good deal of time working in restaurants to keep from starving to death. Ultimately, I decided to get serious about food and enrolled in the Culinary and Hospitality Program at JCCC. This led to a number of interesting gastronomic adventures and eventually convinced me that it was time to get out of the kitchen.

Suddenly, practicing law didn’t seem like such a bad idea. And it has turned out to be a good choice for me.

I like practicing in the bankruptcy field because at the end of most days, I go home with a feeling that someone’s life is a little better because I showed up at work.