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Bankruptcy

Texas Lawyer Blog

Bankruptcy law: adversary proceedings, fraudulent transfers, preferences, creditor representation.
By J. Michael McBride

Post Frequency: 6.9/day

Last Entry: March 29, 2011 at 11:47:27

Excellent Series on Fannie and Freddie

Posted on March 29, 2011
Yesterday, NPR ran an excellent story concerning the rise and fall of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. These entities have a long storied history and their impact has been huge, both in terms of their influence over the federal government as well as their role in the largest housing debacle in history...

Con Man who was ?redeemed? now investigated

Posted on March 28, 2011
Under the sub heading of: “this will make a great movie” comes this tale. A convicted con man, goes straight and becomes a pastor, trains the IRS and FBI on how to detect fraud and he is now being investigated by the SEC for … fraud...

Risky Business or when not to add a lateral hire from a dissolving law firm

Posted on March 25, 2011
Ok, here is the summary: Coudert Brothers was a major storied law firm, based in New York. It dissolved in 2006, having started in 1853. Predictably, lawyers left that firm and joined other firms. Now the remains of Coudert is in bankruptcy and the Trustee has sued some of the firms where the Coudert partners landed for [...

Bankruptcy Hero

Posted on March 24, 2011
As long time readers know, one hero of the bankruptcy world is Professor Elizabeth Warren. As noted in this interview by Liz Weston, MSN Money, Professor Warren has: researched and written extensively about the loss of the middle class, head of the Congressional Oversight Panel investigating the governmental bail out and is now setting up the [...

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Fisher says US Debt at Tipping Point

Posted on March 22, 2011
“The U.S. debt situation is at a “tipping point,” Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Richard Fisher said on Tuesday, and urged the U.S. central bank to refrain from any further stimulus measures. “If we continue down on the path on which the fiscal authorities put us, we will become insolvent...

NY Fed Confirms ?Currency Intervention?

Posted on March 18, 2011
“The New York Federal Reserve Bank confirmed that it intervened in currency markets on Friday for the first time in more than a decade. The disclosure came a day after the Group of Seven major industrialized nations pledged in a statement to join in a coordinated effort to weaken the Japanese yen...

Prayers for Japan

Posted on March 15, 2011
While the internet has offered news of Japan’s tragedy, here is one good article on the devastation of one port town. It also contains a visual series of diagrams which show what is happening with the nuclear plants even now. I particularly think of the first responders who choose to go there and assist with [...

Recent 5th Cir. Case on Bankruptcy Discrimination

Posted on March 14, 2011
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals just issued an opinion on the subject of employment discrimination based on a potential employee’s previous bankruptcy filing. In this case, the Court of Appeals ruled that: “The bankruptcy court granted [the potential employer's] Stewart?s motion to dismiss [the suit by the potential employee] for failure to state a claim, [...

Great Map Site

Posted on March 11, 2011
Here is a link to a site which has maps, throughout the passage of history. http://www.clockwk.com/ This is so important today as one tries to understand what is happening around the globe. For example, to understand modern Iraq, one must understand the history of its borders and its creation in light of the different people groups [...

Secret UFO Files Opened

Posted on March 03, 2011
The British government has opened its UFO files for the first time. They are available online for free for a short time. “British officials on Thursday released about 8,500 pages of previously classified reports that document sightings of unidentified flying objects by the military and members of the public dating back to the 1950s...

Truth in Politics

Posted on February 28, 2011
We all know that Texas politicians always tell the truth, so what is the point of a web site which checks out the facts behind their statements? Well, look and see. It turns out that there are many outrageous statements which are actually true and many which are false...

Collection Tactics: Take Two

Posted on February 22, 2011
Here is another outrageous situation involving illegal tactics used by some collectors. In this instance, the agency targets only US military and as part of its routine collection efforts, it threatened jail time as well as a dishonorable discharge if the service member did not pay...

Justice Thomas?s Silence

Posted on February 16, 2011
It has been five years since Justice Clarence Thomas has asked a question of the attorneys arguing before the Supreme Court. This has raised some interesting commentary. Here are quotes from one article on Justice Thomas’s silence: “So what if he doesn’t talk? His decades’ worth of opinions speak for themselves...

Three Film Companies Head Toward Auction

Posted on February 11, 2011
Bankruptcy Judge Russell, a senior member of the bench sitting in the Central District of California, has ordered that a couple of film companies should be auctioned. As a result, 1,300 films could be sold. “Judge Barry Russell cited an ‘incredible willful failure’ to comply with the rules as part of his judgment, referencing his previous opinions [...

Ron Paul vs. Federal Reserve

Posted on February 10, 2011
Ron Paul has been a consistent critic of the Federal Reserve. He has argued for years that the central bank hurts and does not help the economy. Its actions intentionally and admittedly cause inflation which creates artificial bubbles which then must burst, causing unnecessary economic hardship according to Paul...

Movie Review

Posted on February 07, 2011
The King’s Speech is a great movie and one to watch. However, here is an article which strongly criticizes the movie for whitewashing Churchill’s early views on the Nazi menace. “In point of fact, Churchill was?for as long as he dared?a consistent friend of conceited, spoiled, Hitler-sympathizing Edward VIII...

Egypt Update: Plundering Ancient Art

Posted on January 31, 2011
We can pray that out of the huge riots and upheaval in Egypt more democracy will emerge rather than less; that more religious freedom will be present after this is over rather than less. At this point, however, it is hard to predict what the post rioting Egypt will look like...

State of Bankruptcy

Posted on January 21, 2011
We now know, after the re-election of Governor Perry, that Texas has a budget deficit of an estimated 27 billion dollars and we are now in the same boat as is New York, California and New Jersey. Because of this state level economic disaster, as opposed to the national level economic disaster, some folks are talking [...

Anna Nicole Is to Have Her Day in Court

Posted on January 19, 2011
Although she is dead, Anna Nicole Smith’s estate is making law. Short version of her legal story: Young blond ex playboy model (hereafter: “New Model”) marries old rich man (”ORM”). (Note that ORM used to teach estate planning at Yale Law School…...

Local News: Montgomery Plaza Condo?s Posted for Foreclosure

Posted on January 14, 2011
One of the many success stories of the last decade is the revival of the 7th street area just west of downtown Fort Worth. A dormant light industrial strip is now a bustling area. It is filled with several condominium projects, a hotel, a high end retirement residence and many many restaurants and bars along with assorted [...

More on Longoria Filing

Posted on January 14, 2011
A partner in Beso, Eva Longoria’s restaurant, filed papers with the Bankrutpcy Court claiming that Longoria lacked authority to proceed with a bankrutpcy filing and that the filing was only a litigation tactic and not a real effort to reorganize...

Recent Supreme Court Case

Posted on January 13, 2011
The Supreme Court handed down it?s decision in Ransom v. F.I.A. Card Services, N.A. dealing with calculation of the means test in a Chapter 13 case and, more particularly, the distinction between “Ownership Costs” deductions and “Operating Costs” deduction...

Prediction: Increased Foreclosures

Posted on January 13, 2011
Here is an article which predicts that 2011 will be a banner year…for foreclosures. “‘Early indications in January were that this robo-signing related delay will be over by the end of first quarter if not sooner,’ says RealtyTrac’s Rick Sharga...

Eva Longoria Files Ch 11

Posted on January 11, 2011
“Her restaurant, Beso, in Las Vegas has gone deep into debt, leaving Eva no choice but to file for bankruptcy. If that wasn?t bad enough, Eva, 35, is now being sued for more than $4,000,000.00. TMZ.com reported that an investor of Beso named Mali Nachum is claiming that Eva not only violated California law but cut [...

Recent Case:Bank?s Have to Prove Legal Right to Foreclose, Before They Foreclose

Posted on January 07, 2011
This should not be such an important decision. The fact that it is heralded as important shows how little is expected from banks in the way of legal documentation for their claims. Thus far into the great real estate melt down, banks may have been able to get away with little or no proof that they actually [...

More Reasons To Sell Stocks/Short the Markets

Posted on January 05, 2011
The folks at the Elliott Wave have been saying that we have reached a top of the market for some time. Well, they have said the actual top was right before the big fall in 2008 and that what we have now is an interim retracing back up to an interim high...

Ironies of a Post Bailed Out World

Posted on January 04, 2011
The news today is that Bank of America and Ally Financial both settled claims with mortgage giants, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, for 2.8 billion, for BoA, and 500 million, for Ally. Note first that Ally is the new name for the lender, GMAC. Second, note that all four of these entites was saved from financial ruin by [...

Federal Reserve Starts Buying Treasuries, Balloons Balance Sheet

Posted on December 09, 2010
“The Federal Reserve?s balance sheet reached a record $2.39 trillion as the central bank increased its holdings of Treasury securities as part of a bid to boost economic growth. Treasuries held by the Fed increased by $32.2 billion to $949.6 billion as of Dec...

North Texas Prosecutors Target White Collar Crime

Posted on December 07, 2010
Learning about social trends has been both interesting and instructive. In a time of increasingly negative social moods, there will be both falling markets and finger pointing at a scapegoat; putting blame on the one who caused this meltdown (deserved or not)...

International Law Must Adapt to Rising Seas

Posted on December 06, 2010
Rising seas, global warming, climate change…while these issues are debated in the US, in one nation made up of islands, it is a very real issue, with both practical and legal implications. Specifically, the Marshall Islands are being absorbed into the sea, dues to rising sea levels...