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Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy Law Network

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Last Entry: March 18, 2011 at 11:35:04

What Should A Bankruptcy Case Cost?

Posted on March 18, 2011
Why is it that bankruptcy lawyers value their work so little that they rush to be the cheapest attorney in the Yellow Pages? Why do they meekly accept what the bench considers a “presumptively fair” fee? Why is eye popping quality not the hall mark of the consumer bankruptcy bar? The court adopted no-look attorney’s [...

How Much Does It Cost To File Bankruptcy?

Posted on March 13, 2011
“How much does it cost to file bankruptcy?” This is often the first thing that someone says to me when they call. What they want to know is the total cost for attorney fees and the filing fees. I understand why they ask me, because for someone in financial difficulty, the cost for filing bankrupty is [...

Income Tax Refunds In Bankruptcy

Posted on February 06, 2011
The answer to the question: What happens to my tax refund if I file bankruptcy is: it depends. Tax refunds received, after you file your case, have to be paid to the Chapter 13 bankruptcy trustee, at least in the 6th Circuit, which covers Michigan, Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky, because the U...

Sausage, Guns and Cars: Bankruptcy Exemptions and Thoughts on the Legislative Process

Posted on February 06, 2011
Laws, like sausages, cease to inspire respect in proportion as we know how they are made. John Godfrey Saxe, Daily Cleveland Herald (29 March 1869).[1] Previously, I have outlined the exemptions available to Virginia debtors in bankruptcy – property that a debtor gets to keep from the trustee...

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Mortgage Modifications In Bankruptcy ? A New Wave Is Beginning

Posted on January 29, 2011
Recently, Senator Jeff Merkley from Oregon has been speaking very loudly about the need for the current Congress to amend the Bankruptcy Code to allow cramdowns of first mortgages on primary homesteads. If you recall, the same proposal was attempted by Senator Dick Durbin from Illinois back in 2009...

Family Debts, Loans, Payments, and Repayments in Bankruptcy

Posted on January 27, 2011
Dear Jane, Your mother entrusted her funeral expense money to you last year. You spent it on living expenses. You don’t want your mother to get notice of the bankruptcy as a creditor because you are very much ashamed. You said that you were hoping to repay your mother with your expected tax refund, and asked if we could forget that [...

Borders Gift Cards and Bankruptcy: Time Not to Panic

Posted on January 25, 2011
Borders, the national book store with actual stores, may have to file bankruptcy soon. Is that going to mean disaster for its customers? That’s very unlikely. Borders Group has hired bankruptcy lawyers. It is taking (even) longer to pay for inventory to conserve cash...

How Will I Find a Place to Live If I File for Bankruptcy?

Posted on January 24, 2011
Many of my clients worry about where they will live if the file for bankruptcy and surrender their (usually far under water) house. They’ve heard horror stories about people with bankruptcies on their credit being unable to rent. But things aren’t as bad as they fear...

What is Lien Priming in Bankruptcy?

Posted on January 24, 2011
Lien priming is a term of art in bankruptcy used to refer to a concept in debtor-in-possession financing (“DIP financing”). DIP financing is a very large topic in itself, but simply put, when a business debtor is trying to reorganize in bankruptcy, it often needs cash...

State Bankruptcy Proposals Pit Rich Bondholders against Middle Income Workers

Posted on January 22, 2011
Beware of Greeks bearing gifts. When Newt Gingrich suggests that states need the right to file bankruptcy, he can be up to no good. Who benefits from states filing bankruptcy? The question is a matter of priorities. Fat cat Wall Street bondholders are scared witless about the possibility of their triple-A municipal bonds going south [...

Bankruptcy Judge Albert Radcliffe Will Be Missed

Posted on January 22, 2011
On Wednesday, January 19, 2011, US Bankruptcy Judge Albert E. Radcliffe collapsed in his chambers and died. He was 63 years old and had worked in bankruptcy, first as a lawyer then as a judge, since his graduation from the University of Oregon Law School in 1972...

Business Bankruptcy Debtor Denied a Discharge Under Section 707(a) for Ability to Pay

Posted on January 21, 2011
A Michigan bankruptcy court recently took the unusual step of denying a discharge under bankruptcy code section 707(a) to a debtor whose debts were primarly business debts, based upon the court’s determination that the debtor could repay a portion of his debts in a chapter 11 reorganization case...

Should the Supreme Court Teach a Bankruptcy Seminar? Yes, as soon as possible.

Posted on January 21, 2011
Five years after bankruptcy reform, and millions of cases later, the Supreme Court is still deciding issues affecting the most basic administration of bankruptcy cases. The latest case, In re Ransom, held a debtor may not deduct an ownership expense on the Statement of Current Monthly Income [B22C] for a vehicle that was not encumbered [...

Why You?re Going Through The Turnstile Again ? And How To Stop

Posted on January 21, 2011
Albert Einstein famously defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Al was a smart dude, no doubt – but when it comes to his definition of insanity I’m wondering whether he wasn’t being too simplistic...

Transferring property before bankruptcy is risky business!

Posted on January 19, 2011
Lately, a number of clients coming to see me have just transferred real property (or their interest in real property) to a family member or friend, or they are inquiring about transferring their property to a family member or friend – and, of course, for no money in return...

El Tribunal de Bancarrota de los Estados Unidos para el Distrito Medio de Florida en Español ahora

Posted on January 15, 2011
Florida?s Middle District is second only to the district including Los Angeles in bankruptcy filings. One bankruptcy is filed for every 100 residents of the Florida district that includes Jacksonville, Fort Myers, Orlando and Tampa. This same geographic area has a large and growing hispanic population, and the Clerk of Court is focussed on meeting [...

Credit Cards and Bankruptcy

Posted on January 13, 2011
Foreclosures have been getting a lot of media attention lately, but credit card debt probably accounts for more bankruptcies than foreclosures. And a lot of people who fall behind on mortgage payments and end up in foreclosure do so trying to juggle credit card debt as well, so it’s probably responsible for a fair number [...

The ?Camaro factor? in Bankruptcy Preparation: Use Real Values.

Posted on January 11, 2011
The ?Camaro factor? is the title I have given to the phenomena of people I meet placing too high a value on their property. Often this manifests itself among men and their cars. It is the rare occurrence when I meet a prospective bankruptcy client who actually recognizes that the value of the pile of [...

Tax collector looms over foreclosures

Posted on January 11, 2011
In a down market for home values, a foreclosure sale can create an entirely new creditor in the form of the IRS, collecting taxes on canceled debt. Uncle Sam is the phantom creditor. Homeowners facing foreclosure may benefit from filing bankruptcy, even if they have no debt other than mortgage debt, because bankruptcy is a [...

Bankruptcy and Student Loans-Time to Reconsider Discharge

Posted on January 10, 2011
Student loan debt is not dischargeable in bankruptcy. That’s not news–it’s pretty much common knowledge. But student loan debt for newly-minted lawyers is a growing problem, since the job market for lawyers is, well, abysmal would be an optimistic assessment...

Payday Loans, or Loan Sharks?

Posted on January 08, 2011
As banks go back to having lending standards, they turn down more borrowers. A new industry has sprouted in between traditional lender, like banks and finance companies, and traditional loan sharks like HBO’s Tony Soprano. They call themselves payday lenders...

Death and Bankruptcy.

Posted on January 08, 2011
Unless you are a mortician most people do not like to think about death, especially when considering filing bankruptcy. However there are times when death comes into play whether it be the death of the debtor or the death of a loved one. Inspiration for these blogs come from the everyday experiences in my practice [...

File bankruptcy without a social security number?

Posted on January 08, 2011
Clients frequently ask whether they need a social security number to file bankruptcy. The answer is no. Let’s explain this. Nothing in the bankruptcy code requires that you have a social security number to file bankruptcy. Yet, the official bankruptcy forms ask for your social security number...

After the Holidays ? Now Comes the Hard Part

Posted on January 07, 2011
Now comes the hard part. Holidays are wonderful? and sometimes, some parts, not so wonderful. Some of us know this because we are barely now relaxing from the rush to prepare, having battled traffic and crowds and lines in stores, groceries or airports...

Bankruptcy Discrimination in Hiring Approved by Federal Appeals Court

Posted on January 06, 2011
For the first time, a federal appeals court has ruled that the bankruptcy code does not forbid a private employer from refusing to hire a person based solely on the fact that he or she filed for bankruptcy. The court distinguished refusing to hire a person based upon having filed for bankruptcy from other forms [...

Can I file bankruptcy without my wife? Can I file bankruptcy without my husband?

Posted on January 06, 2011
People frequently ask whether they can file a bankruptcy case without their spouse. The simple answer is yes. The complicated answer is that your spouse matters for several reasons. Let’s assume that you and your spouse are married and living together...

List your stuff at fair value or lose your bankruptcy discharge

Posted on January 05, 2011
When you file a bankruptcy case, you need to list all your stuff. That means all your stuff. That means at fair market value. That means don’t mess around. In particular, don’t mess around with the Bankruptcy Court in Texas. In a recent case, In re Peters, the debtor listed “Art” consisting of “six pictures” worth [...

The 2009 Credit CARD Act ? Does it Do More Harm than Good?

Posted on January 05, 2011
Yesterday’s Wall Street Journal published an opinion piece by George Mason University law professor Todd Zywicki entitled Dodd-Frank and the Return of the Loan Shark. If you do not subscribe to the Wall Street Journal, you can read more about this topic from Professor Zywicki by clicking on the link...

Milwaukee Catholic Church Files for Bankruptcy under Chapter 11

Posted on January 04, 2011
Even a rich and ancient institution like the Roman Catholic Church needs bankruptcy. On January 4, 2011 the Archdiocese of Milwaukee filed for protection in bankruptcy under chapter 11. Other Archdioceses around the United States have previously been forced to file for chapter 11 relief, including those in Portland, Oregon; Wilmington, Delaware; Tucson, Arizona; Spokane, [...

A New Year?A New Financial Goal

Posted on January 04, 2011
As we start a new year, it is a good time to set some new financial goals. In particular, the goal of reducing debt or eliminating your dependence on debt should be everyone’s goal. So, how do we get started? First, you need to know what your debts are...

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