Bankruptcy

RANDOM BANKRUPTCY FACTOIDS - Part II

By mcbride

• One creditor may file for an involuntary bankruptcy proceeding against a borrower, if the borrower has less than 12 creditors and the aggregate undisputed debts are $13,475 or less. If the debtor has more than 12 creditors and the aggregate total of undisputed debts is more than $13,475, then 3 creditors must jointly file for an involuntary bankruptcy proceeding. See 11 U.S.C. § 303(b)(1)(2). 

• If a bankruptcy trustee sues to recover monies, he must file it in the district where the defendant resides (not where the bankruptcy is filed) if the trustee seeks (1) to recover a money judgment of property that is less than $1,100, or (2) to recover a consumer debt that is less than $16,425, or a non-consumer debt that is less than $10,950.  See 28 § 1409(b). 

• Sometimes the most valuable asset of a failed business are intangible, such as the company?s name, logo, trademark, customer list and phone number. Often, these items may be purchased from the trustee in a bankruptcy proceeding.

• A creditor may move for a dismissal of a bankruptcy if certain grounds can be proven. A dismissal of the bankruptcy case restores the status quo so that it is as if the bankruptcy had never been filed. See 11 U.S.C. § 707(a).

• A creditor may request copies of a chapter 13 debtor?s tax returns and a statement of the debtor?s income and expenditures for the most recently completed tax year and a statement of monthly income and expenditures.   See 11 U.S.C. § 521 (e)(2)(c).

• When a creditor files a proof of claim, it is prima facie evidence that the claim is valid until the trustee or debtor objects to it and then proves otherwise at a hearing.

• Note that by filing a proof of claim in a case, a creditor consents to the bankruptcy court?s jurisdiction and waives any right to a jury trial it might otherwise have had under applicable state or federal law.  See Langenkamp v. Culp, 498 U.S. 42 (1990).

Michael

Full post as published by Texas Lawyer Blog on July 29, 2010 (boomark / email).