Court information, required courses, exemptions, and free bankruptcy assistance for San Bernardino and Riverside County residents. Bilingual. Hablamos Español.
Edgar P. Lombera
Bankruptcy Attorney · 15+ Years
If you are drowning in debt and searching for bankruptcy help in the Inland Empire, this page is the starting point. We built it as a free directory of bankruptcy resources Inland Empire residents can trust — the official court information for San Bernardino and Riverside County filers, the required courses, the document checklists, and the places to get free or low-cost bankruptcy assistance, all in one place.
The Law Offices of Edgar Lombera has guided more than 2,500 Inland Empire families through Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 cases. We are bilingual (English / Español), and the first consultation with a bankruptcy attorney in our office is always free. But whether or not you ever call us, the bankruptcy resources below will help you understand your options and avoid the most common mistakes people make before filing.
There are four legitimate routes to bankruptcy assistance Inland Empire residents can rely on. Most people end up combining two or three of them:
If you are not sure which route fits your situation, that is exactly what a free consultation is for — the most direct bankruptcy help Inland Empire families can get. There is no obligation, and we will tell you honestly if bankruptcy is not your best option.
Every consumer bankruptcy case in the Inland Empire — whether you live in San Bernardino, Redlands, Fontana, Riverside, Moreno Valley, or the Coachella Valley — is filed with the United States Bankruptcy Court, Central District of California, Riverside Division, located at 3420 Twelfth Street, Riverside, CA 92501.
Key official resources:
One caution from 15+ years of practice: the court’s staff can answer procedural questions, but they are legally prohibited from giving legal advice. Knowing which chapter to file, which exemptions to claim, and how to time your filing is exactly where bankruptcy filings go wrong without guidance — our bankruptcy timeline & process guide walks through every stage.
Federal law requires two short courses in every consumer bankruptcy case, and both must come from providers approved by the U.S. Trustee Program (the Department of Justice publishes the approved lists at justice.gov/ust):
Both courses are available online and by phone, in English and Spanish. Providers charge a modest fee, and approved agencies must offer fee waivers for filers who cannot afford it. Our office walks every client through both courses — which provider to use, when to take them, and how the certificates get filed — so neither course ever delays a case.
The most common fear we hear at consultations is “will I lose everything?” In practice, the vast majority of Inland Empire Chapter 7 filers keep everything they own, because the bankruptcy exemptions California law provides are designed to protect it.
What you should know about California bankruptcy exemptions:
If you own a home and are behind on payments, exemption planning connects directly to our foreclosure defense practice — Chapter 13 can protect a home that Chapter 7 might put at risk.
If money is the obstacle, there is real bankruptcy help Riverside and San Bernardino County residents can get at little or no cost:
For most working families, the practical comparison is not “free help vs. paid help” — it is the cost of doing it wrong. A dismissed case can mean losing the automatic stay protection right when a wage garnishment or foreclosure is moving.
Whichever route you choose, every form of bankruptcy assistance starts with the same paperwork. Gathering these documents before your first appointment makes every consultation more productive:
Rough numbers are fine. Do not let a missing statement stop you from getting help — we refine the details after the first meeting.
Bankruptcy is the best-known form of debt relief Inland Empire residents reach for — it is not the only one, and an honest advisor will compare the options with you:
If a debt relief company promises to “eliminate your debt without bankruptcy,” compare their math against a free bankruptcy consultation before signing anything. Bankruptcy assistance from a licensed attorney is regulated, court-supervised, and ends with a federal discharge order — debt settlement contracts come with no such guarantee.
We maintain plain-language guides for the situations we see most often in San Bernardino and Riverside County cases:
The Lombera Law bankruptcy hub — start here when you are ready to talk.
Step-by-step Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 walkthrough, from Day 0 to discharge.
Stop a trustee’s sale with Chapter 13 + automatic stay. Same-day emergency filings.
Halt wage garnishment on the next paycheck via bankruptcy filing.
San Bernardino County office serving Redlands, SB, Fontana, Highland, Colton.
City-specific guidance for San Bernardino residents.
Coachella Valley office serving Palm Springs, Indio, Palm Desert, Cathedral City.
Lombera Law serves clients across San Bernardino County (Redlands, San Bernardino, Fontana, Rancho Cucamonga, Ontario, Highland, Colton, Yucaipa, Rialto), Western Riverside County (Riverside, Moreno Valley, Hemet, Beaumont), and the Coachella Valley (Palm Springs, Palm Desert, Cathedral City, Indio, La Quinta, Rancho Mirage, Desert Hot Springs, Coachella) from offices in Redlands and Palm Springs.
Edgar P. Lombera is the founding attorney of the Law Offices of Edgar Lombera — a bankruptcy attorney Inland Empire families have trusted for over 15 years. He has represented Inland Empire consumers and homeowners in over 2,500 Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 cases before the United States Bankruptcy Court, Central District of California — Riverside Division. His practice focuses on practical, plain-language counseling so clients understand exactly which resources and options fit their situation. The firm is bilingual (English / Español) and serves clients across San Bernardino County, Riverside County, and the Coachella Valley.
Get answers to the most common bankruptcy help and resource questions. For personalized guidance, call (909) 915-0181 (Redlands) or (760) 835-9353 (Palm Springs).
Start with three free resources: a no-cost consultation with a consumer bankruptcy attorney, the self-help resources published by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Central District of California, and Inland Counties Legal Services for income-qualified residents. Approved nonprofit credit counseling agencies also offer free budget reviews.
Yes. Riverside is home to the bankruptcy court itself — the Central District’s Riverside Division at 3420 Twelfth Street — and every resource on this page serves Riverside residents. Our Redlands office is about 15 minutes from downtown Riverside, and we represent Riverside filers regularly.
At our office: a review of your debts, income, and assets; an on-the-spot means test estimate; a comparison of Chapter 7, Chapter 13, and non-bankruptcy debt relief options; and a clear fee quote if you decide to file. You leave knowing your options whether or not you hire us.
You have the legal right to file without an attorney. Individuals do it successfully in simple cases — but exemption elections, the means test, and procedural deadlines are where self-filed cases most often fail or lose property unnecessarily. At minimum, use a free consultation before deciding to go alone.
The means test compares your household income over the past six months against California’s median income for your household size to determine Chapter 7 eligibility. The Department of Justice publishes the current figures at justice.gov/ust. If your income is above the median, a second calculation of allowed expenses applies — this is where attorney analysis matters most.
The United States Bankruptcy Court, Central District of California — Riverside Division, at 3420 Twelfth Street, Riverside, CA 92501. It serves both San Bernardino and Riverside counties, so cases from Redlands to Palm Springs are all filed and heard there.
The national official forms — the petition, schedules, and statements — are free at uscourts.gov, and the Central District publishes its local forms at cacb.uscourts.gov. Never pay a third-party website for blank bankruptcy forms.
Two: a pre-filing credit counseling course (within 180 days before filing) and a post-filing debtor education course (before discharge). Both must come from providers approved by the U.S. Trustee Program; the approved lists are at justice.gov/ust. Both are available online in English and Spanish.
State laws that protect your property in bankruptcy. California filers choose between two systems — the 704 set (stronger homestead protection) and the 703 set (flexible wildcard). Most filers keep everything they own, but choosing the wrong system can expose property the other would have protected.
Search the attorney’s name at calbar.ca.gov, the State Bar of California’s free public lookup. It shows license status and any discipline history. Also confirm the person is actually an attorney — bankruptcy petition preparers are not lawyers and cannot give legal advice.
Debt management plans through nonprofit credit counseling agencies, negotiated settlements, and simple hardship arrangements with creditors. Each has real trade-offs in cost, credit impact, and legal protection. A free consultation should compare them honestly against Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 for your numbers.
No. This page is general legal information and a directory of bankruptcy resources for Inland Empire residents. Every case is different — for advice about your situation, schedule a free, confidential consultation.
Every resource on this page gets easier with someone who has done this 2,500+ times. Bring your questions — about the court, the courses, the exemptions, or whether bankruptcy even makes sense for you.
The consultation is free, confidential, and bilingual. We never push a filing on someone who does not need one. Hablamos Español.
Law Offices of Edgar P. Lombera
2068 Orange Tree Lane, Suite 220
Redlands, CA 92374
Phone: (909) 915-0181
San Bernardino County · Free Consultation · Hablamos Español
Law Offices of Edgar P. Lombera
1276 N. Palm Canyon Dr., Suite 107
Palm Springs, CA 92262
Phone: (760) 835-9353
Coachella Valley · Free Consultation · Hablamos Español
U.S. Bankruptcy Court
Central District of California
Riverside Division
3420 Twelfth Street, Riverside, CA 92501
Where all Inland Empire cases are heard
No pressure, no obligation — just answers. Tell us a little about your situation and we’ll call you back. Formulario disponible en español también.
Attorney Advertising · Debt Relief Disclosure: The information on this page is general legal information, not legal advice. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes — every case is different. We are a debt relief agency. We help people file for bankruptcy relief under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. An attorney-client relationship is not formed until a written engagement agreement is signed. External links are provided for convenience; we are not responsible for the content of third-party websites.
