Unlocking Hope: How Student Loan Discharge Transforms Clients and Strengthens Your Practice

For decades, bankruptcy attorneys have assumed student loans were the “untouchable” debt. We would tell clients, “Sorry, bankruptcy doesn’t help with student loans,” and move on. But that mindset is no longer accurate—and failing to revisit it may put us at odds with our professional duties. With the Department of Justice’s 2022 guidance, there is now a clear, standardized process that the government itself participates in—one that can deliver real relief to borrowers.

Adding student loan discharge to my practice has not only transformed my clients’ lives but also strengthened and streamlined my practice.

The Human Side: Unmatched Client Gratitude

Bankruptcy clients are grateful when you help them wipe out credit cards, medical bills, or payday loans. But the gratitude I’ve seen from clients after eliminating student loans is in a different category altogether.

One client, a single mother in her late sixties, had taken loans to help her children attend college and then to get a better job herself. She spent decades making payments only to watch her balance grow. We filed her student loan adversary and discharged over $107,000 in student loans that she believed she would never pay off. When the discharge came through, she said, “I never thought I’d be free of this. You didn’t just give me a fresh start—you gave me peace.”

Another client had applied for every program under the sun: IDR adjustments, Public Service Loan Forgiveness, and even Total and Permanent Disability discharge. Each attempt hit delays, denials, or shifting rules. He came to me exhausted and fearful. We discharged $335,000 in federal student loans and gave them something the federal system couldn’t: certainty.

These outcomes stick with you. And they stick with clients, too—driving loyalty, referrals, and your reputation in the community.

Why Bankruptcy Lawyers Can’t Ignore Student Loans

The federal system has become increasingly difficult to navigate:

• Constant Changes in IDR Plans – SAVE, PAYE, REPAYE, IBR… with shifting rules, recalculations, and eligibility criteria.

• Delays in Forgiveness – Borrowers who have made decades of payments often find their forgiveness timeline extended by administrative backlogs, or changes to the rules.

• Denial of TPD Applications – Even borrowers with severe, documented disabilities can be denied relief, or have difficulty getting their applications approved

  
  

For many debtors, bankruptcy is the only real, reliable pathway to lasting resolution. And as attorneys, we cannot ethically ignore that.

With the DOJ attestation process, federal student loan discharge is no longer a theoretical possibility—it is a tangible, attainable option. Failing to inform clients about it could rise to the level of an ethical lapse, plus it isn’t good for our businesses!

The Value to Your Practice

Offering student loan discharge is not about starting an entirely new practice area. It is about building on what you already do well:

• Efficiency – You already have your clients' financial information, hardship story, and trust. Adding the student loan component requires minimal extra groundwork.

• Practice Growth – A structured fee for adversary proceedings increases revenue per client without increasing acquisition costs.

• Client Loyalty – When you deliver results your peers said were impossible, clients become advocates for your firm.

• Professional Differentiation – Very few attorneys in any district offer this service. Those who do quickly become the “student loan attorney” in their area.

It is an efficient, high-impact way to expand your practice while delivering extraordinary value to clients.

You Don’t Need to Become an Expert

One common hesitation I hear is: “But I don’t know enough about student loan law to do this.”

That’s where Student Debt Solutions (Resolvent) comes in. It provides a structured platform to help identify eligible cases, prepare the DOJ attestation, and guide both you and your clients. With that support, you don’t need to become a student loan specialist overnight. You can focus on being the trusted bankruptcy lawyer you already are—while leveraging expert systems in the background.

Final Thoughts: The Complete Fresh Start

As bankruptcy attorneys, we take pride in providing our clients with a fresh start. But if we ignore their student loans, we are only giving them a partial one.

Today, with the DOJ framework in place, partnering with Student Debt Solutions makes student loan discharge a practical, accessible, and easy solution. It provides certainty for clients who have been failed by the federal system, and it provides growth and differentiation for your practice.

I urge you to take the step I did—integrate student loan discharge into your practice. Your clients will thank you in ways you’ve never experienced, your reputation will grow, and you’ll know you are offering them the complete fresh start they deserve.