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Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy Law Network

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

Don?t Wait Until You?re Completely Broke to Contact a Bankruptcy Lawyer

Posted on August 23, 2010
People sometimes spend down the last of their cash and then decide they need bankruptcy. This seems like common sense: you go broke and then you go bankrupt. But this is not how it works. There?s a saying that goes, ?bankruptcy is not for paupers.? This means that bankruptcy costs money and is usually not [...

Attorney-Client Relationship: Why Did My Attorney Terminate Our Contract?

Posted on August 22, 2010
Recently, one of my chapter 13 clients called my office to tell us he was moving to the opposite end of the state. My client (still in the preparation stages of filing) wanted me to continue to be his bankruptcy attorney. He was angry that I would not agree to continue to represent him and that our contract had been terminated...

Your Debt Problems Won?t Be Saved By The Man Of Steel

Posted on August 21, 2010
I was always a fan of The West Wing. In one episode, a priest speaks with Martin Sheen’s character, President Bartlet, and tells the following story about a man trying to escape a flood: ?He heard a radio report that the river was going to rush up and flood the town...

Can a creditor garnish money from a bank account?

Posted on August 20, 2010
Creditors typically garnish an account to collect a debt after obtaining a judgment. If a creditor files a non-wage garnishment affidavit upon a bank that holds your money, the bank can be forced to pay that creditor what ever money is on deposit in your account, up to the amount of the judgment...

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Tracy Hope Davis Appointed Region 2 U.S. Trustee

Posted on August 17, 2010
Tracy Hope Davis has been appointed U.S. Trustee for Region 2 (New York, Connecticut and Vermont). She has been acting U.S. Trustee since July 1, 2010. She joined the U.S. Trustee Program in 1997 as a trial attorney and has served as the Assistant U...

Criminal Restitution is a Bankruptcy Preference

Posted on August 17, 2010
A criminal restitution payment can be a bankruptcy preference says the 9th Circuit. If paid within 90 days of a bankruptcy filing, a criminal restitution payment can be recovered by the trustee for the bankruptcy estate. In State Compensation Insurance Fund v...

Are ?Debt Management? Programs a Scam?

Posted on August 16, 2010
You’ve seen the ads for “Debt Management Programs”–”Settle $10,000 in credit card debt for as little as $2,000!” But do they really work? Do they make sense? Or are they scams? Yes, they work. But only rarely do they make sense...

Bankruptcy, Mortgage Modification, Debt Relief, Debt Settlment, Debt Management and/or Debt Consolidation

Posted on August 16, 2010
If you are considering bankruptcy, mortgage modification, debt relief, debt settlement, debt management (credit counseling) or debt consolidation, you should look at all of them to be sure you are making the right decision for you and that you have all the facts...

Florida?s Foreclosure Court is designed to put politics ahead of justice

Posted on August 15, 2010
If you are unable or unwilling to file a bankruptcy, the only way to stop a foreclosure is to fight the foreclosure in state court. When it comes to saving homeownership in Florida, the Middle Class is on its own. Any plan implemented by President Obama and Congress has proven woefully inadequate, and it?s no [...

Pay Traffic Tickets On-Line And Bankruptcy

Posted on August 11, 2010
North Carolina has implemented a “pay your traffic ticket on-line.” While this is not exactly related to bankruptcy, there is a connection. For debtors in a chapter 13 case, the case can last up to five years. That is five years of making sure that you budget your money and carefully consider non-recurring expenses like ...

Qualifying to File Bankruptcy

Posted on August 11, 2010
Do I qualify to file a bankruptcy? I hear that often in my consultations with consumers who are looking for some relief from their debts. The easy answer is ?yes;? almost everyone qualifies for some kind of bankruptcy relief. Most often, the question arises because of horror stories the client has heard about not being [...

Bankruptcy and your Second Mortgage

Posted on August 11, 2010
People in chapter 7 bankruptcy frequently face foreclosure. They owe more on their first mortgage than their house is worth. Maybe they even have a second mortgage. That second mortgage could be a line of credit or a HELOC or just a plain vanilla mortgage loan...

Chapter 13 Plan Sunk By Taxes

Posted on August 10, 2010
Failure to withhold enough for taxes due post confirmation of a Chapter 13 bankruptcy can be fatal to the case. Some of the things that interfere with a debtor’s ability to fund a Chapter 13 plan are outside their control: job loss and illness come immediately to mind...

Can the bankruptcy trustee take my tax refund?

Posted on August 09, 2010
A bankruptcy trustee might be able to take your income tax refund whether you have filed a chapter 7 or chapter 13 bankruptcy case. Some courts say that this procedure is improper – but it happens every day in many places. How can this be? Well, income tax refunds in chapter 13 are “property [...

Planning Bankruptcy, Stop Paying Creditors?

Posted on August 08, 2010
You might file bankruptcy, well, for sure, so you stop paying those annoying creditors, but when is the best time? The answer is: it depends. What did you expect? I am a lawyer. Keep paying the mortgage or mortgages if you are keeping your house. Keep making the lease payments or payments to purchase the vehicle or cars you [...

Paying for Bankruptcy: ?Running on Empty?

Posted on August 07, 2010
In my Charleston, South Carolina bankruptcy practice, I’m frequently asked, “how much is it?” By that, the client means, “how much is this going to cost me?” I recently wrote about attorneys fees in bankruptcy and how the amount of the fee should not be your primary focus in hiring an attorney...

Isaiah 57:19 And Bankruptcy.

Posted on August 07, 2010
When you are considering filing bankruptcy why not consider Isaiah 57:19. Isaiah 57:19 generally states “I create the fruit of the lips?”. If you hang around any attorneys you will hear “words have meaning.” So whether you consider what the Bible proclaims or attorneys proclaim the bottom line is that words have power to create [...

?Attorney Fee Only? Chapter 13 Plans Disallowed by Massachussetts Bankruptcy Court

Posted on August 06, 2010
A bankruptcy court in Massachussetts recently held that “attorney fee only” chapter 13 plans run afoul of bankruptcy code section 1325(a)(3)’s good faith requirement. The court held that where the chapter 13 debtors could have filed chapter 7 and obtained an immediate discharge of all their debts, and where all the debtors’ property was exempt, [...

Should a ?Stay & Pay? Homeowner Consider a Mortgage Refinance?

Posted on August 03, 2010
I recently received an email from a web site visitor who asked an interesting question about his responsibilities to his mortgage company. This gentleman had filed a Chapter 7 and received a discharge four years ago but did not reaffirm his mortgage...

The Bankruptcy Automatic Stay Protects You

Posted on August 01, 2010
When a bankruptcy is filed the debtor gets an automatic stay. The stay is a very important. It prevents your creditors from continuing any attempts to collect on the debts that are owed. While in place, the creditors can’t: Call you in an attempt to collect on a debt; Send you letters or other correspondence to collect on a debt; File a [...

House Passes New Exemption For Gunowners Facing Bankruptcy! Well, Whoop-Ti-Do!

Posted on July 29, 2010
The United States House of Representatives passed H.R. 5827 which allows gunowners to exempt up to $3,000.00 in value in firearms. A comparable version is pending in the Senate now. This is big news right? Not really. First, putting aside the fact that the Senate must pass this legislation and the president must sign it, so [...

I Can?t Afford A Bankruptcy Lawyer?Do I Really Need One?

Posted on July 28, 2010
You are thinking that you may need to file bankruptcy but you are concerned that you do not have the money for a bankruptcy lawyer. You are wondering whether you can afford to pay a qualified attorney to handle your case for you. Perhaps the better question is–can you afford not to! Just recently, I learned [...

Do I have to see an attorney that practices in the same county I reside?

Posted on July 28, 2010
You live in one county, you are considering an attorney in a different county — does it matter? Do you have to see an attorney in the same county you live? (This is part of what you might be considering when you consider who to hire… for other considerations, see these posts: Wendell Sherk’s Shopping [...

Chapter 13 Bankruptcy and Cars: ?Life is a Highway?

Posted on July 27, 2010
Filing a Chapter 13 bankruptcy lets you do things you couldn’t otherwise do in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy. One of the things you can do is “cram down” a vehicle. It sounds a little violent, and I’m sure it feels that way to an auto lender...

Be Careful About Information On the Internet

Posted on July 26, 2010
I know you’ve heard it before (and it’s been written about before, e.g., here, Jay Fleischman’s Where Do You Find Credible Bankruptcy Information), but I just finished meeting with a new client — she almost hadn’t come, having emailed me yesterday saying she had done research on the internet and concluded she could not do [...

What Are the Duties of the Trustee in Bankruptcy?

Posted on July 26, 2010
When you file a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy case, a Trustee is appointed to administer your case. This person is an independent contractor who works for the Office of the U.S. Trustee in the Department of Justice. Although they are commonly attorneys, there is no requirement that you be admitted to practice law [...

FYI ? Elizabeth Warren

Posted on July 25, 2010
Elizabeth Warren is being proposed by some as the best choice to head the new Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, as discussed here in a New York Times editorial, as well as here at a USA Today article. Who is she? The short answer is that she’s a bankruptcy expert at Harvard Law School, and [...

What Are the Minimum (or Maximum) Debt Amounts to File for Bankruptcy?

Posted on July 24, 2010
One question we’re often asked is what the minimum debt amount is to allow someone to file for bankruptcy. The answer is very simple: there is *no* minimum debt amount to be eligible to file. This is true for Chapter 7, Chapter 11, Chapter 12 and Chapter 13...

Can I Pay My Creditors Even After I Received A Bankruptcy Discharge?

Posted on July 23, 2010
Yes, you can pay your creditors after you received a bankruptcy discharge. Nothing prohibits you from voluntarily paying your creditors, either one or two creditors that are important to you, or all of them. Of course, as a bankruptcy lawyer, it begs the question– if you want to pay your creditors and assuming that you [...

Filing For Chapter 7 Bankruptcy! Do I Need To Have A Job?

Posted on July 20, 2010
It is not necessary to have a job to file a Chapter 7 bankruptcy. In fact, the filing of Chapter 7 is probably one of the few instances in your life where it helps to not be employed. When a Chapter 7 is filed, the debtor must show that they do not have enough income available [...

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