Thomas R Burns

Helpful over the phone appriciate it being helpful

Mr. Burns was my lawyer for my chapter 7 bankruptcy that was filed back in 2013. It was such an emotionally painful and humiliating process and still is every time I have to inform folks that I filed. Mr. Burns was great throughout the process: he is very direct and fact oriented, he is incredibly thorough and organized, and he is understanding and patient. On top of this, it is February of 2016 and I am still reaching out to him for issues related to my bankruptcy. He always answers the phone or calls back in a timely manner, and he offers me the feedback or information that I need. One time he had to write a letter to CCSF reminding them that I filed and to stop it with the threatening letters. This is not an easy process, folks; Mr. Burns is someone you can have on your side for the long haul.

Tom handled two different issues for me, and I am more than satisfied with his performance on both. He did a good job of letting me know what to expect at each step in the process, provided excellent guidance and (most importantly to me) was extremely responsive to questions and requests.
One of these issues was unusually complicated and drawn out, but Tom went well beyond the call of duty and succeeded in helping me deal with it. My comfort and confidence throughout this process were bolstered by Tom’s efforts.
As an added bonus, I found him very personable and easy to deal with.
I would recommend Tom without reservation.

We live in an overwhelming world in an overwhelming city and while we think nothing of talking about the most intimate of subjects with people we barely know… the ugly subject of money is never discussed even with our closest friends and family… while every day we see more concern for just how much longer can San Francisco renters continue to live beyond their means ($ 8000 for a 3 bedroom at Market and Dolores!!!) and yet we still find ways to buy things we don’t need with money we don’t have to impress people we don’t know. ENOUGH. I called Tom Burns when I was at my most overwhelmed. Professional, smart, responsive and kind with a staff I would describe as the same, if you’re needing some help on that subject you can’t discuss with anyone else, don’t hesitate to call Tom. You will feel better and more in control after the first hello. Stress kills… it might save your life.

Tom Burns is a wonderful Bankruptcy Attorney, if i could give 10 stars i would. I actually originally went with Tom over the other attorney in his suite simply bec he was less expensive, but it turned out to be the best decision I couldve made.
At a time when i was really in financial trouble and was about to get a large wage garnishment, Tom was wonderful, efficient, and best of all totally honest!
2 times during my Ch 13 Bankruptcy case he saved me from getting my Chapter 13 dismissed by the trustee. He just is one of those attorneys you are so glad you have on your side.
Im writing this right now with another potential issue with my case, but regardless of how things turn out, i know that he will 1. Tell me the truth 2. Give me the best advice possible 3. Do his best to help…
If you have a potential bankruptcy you would be wise to call Tom Burns.

If you’re considering bankruptcy and are grappling with all the emotions that accompany the decision (pain? shame? sadness?), then I say you should walk – no run – away from this guy. He was fine up until the time he collected his money at the start of the process. After that, he appeared completely disinterested, insensitive, even cold. He went through the motions (and I don’t mean legal) but didn’t pay attention to the details, and in the end, his lack of attention to detail created a huge problem for me, which I would prefer not to go into here. Suffice it to say, there are plenty of bankruptcy attorneys out there and if I were you I’d keep shopping around.

A friend of mine recently used Thomas for his bankruptcy. He was professional, knowledgeable and understanding. I would highly recommend Mr. Burns.

I used the Burns office for a business bankruptcy and was pleased with the services and results. My expectations were met 100% mainly because Mr. Burns was very good at spelling out what the bankruptcy would entail and what hurdles needed to be crossed.
I would definitely recommend him.
I did some shopping around and found his fees reasonable.

I was really lucky to have been referred to Tom Burns. I was really in a lot of trouble with my creditors and Tom was calm and patient with me. He made the whole process very easy for me to understand. Tom was always available to me. He responded to my emails right away. I had one creditor that wouldn’t stop bothering me and one phone call to Tom took care of it.

I wish it were possible to give negative stars on Unilocal,but I also wish I could have a lemon-​yellow Lotus Elise to do my grocery runs, as it’s the perfect stylish SF errand car.
Tom Burns is so incompetent that, even as bad as he f**ked me over, I still ended up feeling sorry for him,. Seriously, dude, just put the bag over your head and end it already!
I was in a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, which– for those of you fortunate enough to have never been through this process, and thus don’t know the finer points– means you are making scheduled payments to satisfy a portion of your debts, instead of discharging them outright, as you would in Chapter 7. The reason for this is that taxes are not dischargeable in bankruptcy unless the returns have been on file for two years prior to your filing, and mine weren’t. It’s a nitty-​gritty technicality, I know– but the devil is in the details. And understanding details is why you get paid as a lawyer. And yes, I told Burns about my tax status, but he didn’t listen ‘cuz he didn’t think it important. It was. I can give you 90,000 reasons why.
So, I owed the IRS and California $ 90,000 in taxes on hypothetical profits I never actually saw in the dot-​com days. I had declared bankruptcy in 2005 and had that debt reduced to about $ 10,000 of the principal, to be paid over five years. And I made my scheduled payments regularly for three years. Well, when the housing bubble popped in 2008, I lost my job again, and could no longer make my scheduled payments. I got something like three payments behind.
All I needed was for an attorney to stand up for me at the court and ask for a modified plan, to defer some payments and roll them into larger payments when I got working again. Three years into a five-​year plan, with a good payment history, I had a slam dunk shot at approval of a modification; I just needed to go through the process.
Instead, Tom Burns had the idea that we could convert my Chapter 13 to a Chapter 7 and get rid of my debts for good and all. I told him, based on my tax situation and my understanding of the law, that this wouldn’t work. Mr. Tom Burns, Esquire, became bitchy and impatient, and told me to just follow his advice. I knew it was a bad idea, but he was the lawyer…
Well, as soon as we did what he advised and converted my case to a 7, yes, my minor credit card and consumer debt, approximately $ 8,000, got discharged, but the full amount of the tax debt came back, all $ 90,000. And when I corresponded with him about his error in advice, he told me just to accept it. He said he had come into the case late, and didn’t understand the facts of my case or the applicable law. This despite the fact that I had tried to tell him, and he wouldn’t listen. Ooops!
Tom Burns never took the time to understand either the actual facts of my case nor the applicable law– which is pretty much the definition of malpractice. More to the point, if the assumptions he had made– in absence of actually understanding the facts of my case– were true, I would have been in a Chapter 7 to begin with.
Tom Burns has a law degree from the commuter college at Golden Gate University. He should have taken the medical assistant track, which I’ve heard is excellent. In meeting with him, I noted he has a very hard time absorbing and synthesizing facts and aligning them with a legal strategy, which is a core part of being an attorney. Burns, like many incompetent people, is extremely unpleasant and rude to his clients. He obviously hates the practice of law precisely because he is just no damn good at it.
I heartily hope Tom Burns finds a profession he likes and is suited to, but practicing law just ain’t it. Maybe he could get a job washing cars at the Lotus dealership…