A 2255 federal habeas petition must be filed within one year after your federal conviction becomes final. With very limited exceptions, your petition will be dismissed if you miss the filing deadline. Because you do not have a right to counsel in habeas proceedings, no lawyer will be automatically assigned to this case. If you want to file a habeas petition, you must find a lawyer to represent you or you must file it on your own (known as filing pro se). Since the deadlines for filing a habeas petition can be very short, if you are interested in finding a lawyer to help you, there is no time to waste.