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Bankruptcy

The Debt Podcast

Hosted by Jay S. Fleischman, a bankruptcy and consumer lawyer located in New York City. Information and news designed to help you learn more about bankruptcy, debt relief, and consumer credit options.

Post Frequency: 4.9/day

Last Entry: November 23, 2010 at 18:33:08

Ninth Circuit Allows Post Petition Attorney Fees as Unsecured Claim

Posted on July 24, 2009
On June 23, 2009, in the case of SNTL Corp. 2009 WL 1758759 (9th Cir. Cal.)), the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals concluded that unsecured creditors may claim attorney fees incurred postpetition based on a prepetition contract with the debtor. The Ninth Circuit essentially adopted the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel decision and attached the same as an [...

Federal Parent Plus Student Loan Discharges On Death

Posted on July 24, 2009
Death of the parent or dependent student discharges the obligation to pay a Federal Parent Plus student loan. Most people learn the hard way that student loans are difficult if not impossible to discharge in bankruptcy. The seminal case, In re Bruner, has been discussed on this site...

Who is the U.S. Trustee?

Posted on July 24, 2009
The Office of the United States Trustee is an arm of the Department of Justice charged with certain duties in bankruptcy cases. The role of the U.S. Trustee can differ from district to district, but principal responsibilities are to appoint and supervise case trustees, i...

Cramdown On First Mortgages Gets A Second Look By Senate

Posted on July 24, 2009
Several months ago, there was a bill before Congress which, if passed into law, would have allowed Bankruptcy Judges to modify first mortgages on homesteads. However, the bill failed in the Senate. As of now, the Bankruptcy Code does not allow a debtor to cramdown the mortgage on his first mortgage...

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What To Do If You Can?t Make Chapter 13 Plan Payments? Part 1 Of 7.

Posted on July 24, 2009
You are in a Chapter 13 bankruptcy and something has happened that is making it impossible to make your Chapter 13 Plan payments. What should you do? First, the worst thing you can do is to do nothing! If you stop making your Chapter 13 Plan payments to the Trustee eventually the Trustee will dismiss your Chapter [...

Saving Your Home After Job Loss

Posted on July 24, 2009
Most people who have lost their jobs immediately become afraid of lose their homes - and for good reason. After all, the stress of going foreclosure and being evicted from your home is an experience no one wants to have to endure. Plus, most homeowners view mortgage lenders as being unsympathetic to the plights of [...

Attorney on the Go, Chip Parker, releases video blogs on YouTube

Posted on July 23, 2009
Jacksonville bankruptcy attorney Chip Parker has begun releasing a series of video blogs entitled Attorney on the Go on the Bankruptcy Law Network YouTube Channel. The topics will cover a variety of bankruptcy and foreclosure basics. You can subscribe to the channel, and whenever any of the BLN authors post a video blog, you’ll be the [...

Are You The Next Success Story? Bankruptcy Is A New Beginning

Posted on July 23, 2009
Bankruptcy is not the end of the road. Bankruptcy is only the beginning. I’ve been practicing bankruptcy law for many years, and I can honestly say that I have helped thousands of families receive a Fresh Start. The one thing that I always wonder is: What will they do with that Fresh Start? Most Bankruptcy [...

What Debts are Dischargeable?

Posted on July 23, 2009
Debts that are generally dischargeable in bankruptcy include credit card debts, unsecured personal loans, outstanding medical bills, overdue utility bills and other types of unsecured obligations owed by a debtor. With secured debts, liens are generally discharged in special circumstances, via special proceedings...

Is There Life After Bankruptcy?

Posted on July 23, 2009
Even when faced with a financial crisis, many people hesitate to declare personal bankruptcy, primarily because they think they’ll never be able to take out a home mortgage, obtain a credit card, or buy a car again. They envision themselves having to pay bills through Western Union, and being unable to use a credit card [...

Bankrupty and the MLM Distributor - Part I: Why there is Enhanced Risk

Posted on July 22, 2009
Over the past couple of years I have met with several potential clients who were in the MLM (multi-level-marketing) business and were looking to file (Chapter 7) bankruptcy. Recently I spent a good 45 minutes on the phone with another potential client in the MLM business and this conversation got me thinking about the issues [...

Reasons to file a Chapter 13

Posted on July 22, 2009
Individuals file Chapter 13 bankruptcy for a variety of reasons. The following are some of the most common ones we hear from clients: 1. You fell behind on your mortgage or car payments and need bankruptcy to catch up. 2. You make more than the median income in your state and do not pass the [...

When is Bankruptcy the Right Choice?

Posted on July 22, 2009
In today’s economic climate, an increasing number of people are discovering their incomes are no longer enough to pay for their debt and essential expenses. Hundreds of companies are outsourcing work and laying off workers every week.. not to mention ?encouraging? workers to resign from their jobs so that employers can avoid paying unemployment benefits...

Stephen Baldwin - Another Celebrity Bankruptcy

Posted on July 22, 2009
Stephen Baldwin file Chapter 11 Bankruptcy yesterday. He is just another celebrity who has been brought back to reality. Although I have yet to see the Petition and Schedules that were filed in the Bankruptcy Court, news reports state that the actor is millions of dollars in debt...

The Bankruptcy Means Test

Posted on July 21, 2009
The 2005 amendments to the bankruptcy code created a new ?Means Test.? The main purpose of this test is to a) determine if an individual is eligible to file a Chapter 7 bankruptcy and b) to determine the disposable income of a Chapter 13 debtor who is above the median income...

Credit Counseling And Filing Bankruptcy

Posted on July 20, 2009
The law requires that all debtors take a credit counseling course before a bankruptcy is filed. That means that both spouses in a joint case must take the course. It isn?t a multi-session course: just one class of an hour to two on the phone or the internet...

Can I Bankrupt My Student Loan?

Posted on July 20, 2009
Student loans are not discharged in a bankruptcy proceeding unless repayment of the loan will create an undue hardship for the debtor or the debtor’s dependents. The bankruptcy code prevents student loan discharge in most cases. Many courts have adopted a test formulated in 1987 by the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and [...

What to Bring to an Initial Bankruptcy Consultation

Posted on July 19, 2009
Many times, it is possible for a bankruptcy attorney to tentatively diagnose your financial problems and outline solutions without detailed documentation. However, the following documents may be helpful during an initial bankruptcy consultation: 1. A recent pay slip for you and your spouse (if you are married)...

Selling Your Home in Bankruptcy (Part One: Chapter 7)

Posted on July 19, 2009
If you?ve filed for bankruptcy under Chapter 7, you can usually still sell your home. But there is likely to be a delay before you can complete the sale, so you need to understand basic bankruptcy procedure. Can your home be sold? The answer is: It depends...

Bankruptcy Exemptions in Massachusetts

Posted on July 18, 2009
Bankruptcy debtors have the right to exempt property from the bankruptcy estate up to a certain dollar amount. In Massachusetts, bankruptcy debtors have the option of using either the Federal or Massachusetts exemptions to do this. Where a debtor has a large amount of home equity they want to protect, he or she [...

What debts to include in bankruptcy?

Posted on July 18, 2009
My clients struggle deciding which of their debts should be listed in their bankruptcy papers. This is wasted time. My headline poses a trick question. There is no decision to make: you include ALL of your debts. Period. “But, but, but,” the clients sputter...

Wrong Amount Listed for Bank Account Balance; Debtors Lose Over $13,000

Posted on July 17, 2009
Think you can always amend the bankruptcy schedules later if it turns out there was more in the bank than was originally listed? Think again — that’s the message of In re Barrows, No. 09-6003 ((8th Cir. BAP July 10, 2009). In Barrows, the debtors were not allowed to amend their exemptions, thereby losing over [...

Bankruptcy No Document Proof of Claim Disallowed

Posted on July 17, 2009
On July 14, 2009, the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals issued a decision disallowing a “no doc” claim in a Bankruptcy Case. Such a holding by the 10th Circuit now binds all Courts in that Circuit and will have an impact on similar proof of claims throughout the United States...

Reasons to file a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy

Posted on July 16, 2009
There are many reasons people decide to file Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Here are a few we have been seeing a lot of recently: 1. Your monthly debt payments, when combined with your living expenses, exceed your monthly income. 2. You would like to wipe out your debts and receive a fresh start as quickly as possible...

Consumer Bankruptcy Cases Approaching Record Level

Posted on July 16, 2009
When Congress changed the bankruptcy law in 2005, cases spiked. People feared, and rightly so, that bankruptcy cases would get harder to file. Guess what? Bankruptcy cases are spiking again. According the the American Bankruptcy Institute, consumer bankruptcy cases for 2009 will be at the highest level at any time since the 2005 peak...

Online Federal Tax Filing Available For Free

Posted on July 15, 2009
Most bankruptcy debtors will need to file their taxes before, or soon after, filing for bankruptcy. If your adjusted gross income for 2008 was $56,000 or less, you are eligible for free tax preparation and e-filing of your federal taxes. This services is available through a partnership between the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) [...

Should I Keep My House In A Bankruptcy Filing?

Posted on July 14, 2009
With all the news stories about the foreclosure crisis and with the available programs for folks to try to maintain their house, a more basic question arises–should I even keep my house in a bankruptcy filing? To be sure, this is not a decision to be made lightly and only after exploring all available options...

Remodeling Contractors - Bankruptcy Considerations Part 1

Posted on July 14, 2009
Over the past couple of years I have met with several dozen remodeling contractors to discuss bankruptcy. Like many places, the Atlanta area has experienced a downturn in home building and home renovations and building contractors of all sizes have suffered greatly...

Means Test and 707(b): Huge House Payment, Motor Home, and Boat Payments Allowed for Chapter 7 Debtors

Posted on July 14, 2009
A surprising result in a California bankruptcy case: an $800,000 house with a monthly payment of $4,446, a motor home with a monthly payment of $396, and a boat with a monthly payment of $760 actually enabled a married couple to successfully file chapter 7...

Who Needs Small Business Chapter 11? (Part Two)

Posted on July 14, 2009
Chapter 11 small business part one discussed some of the reasons businesses lose money, and the start of the analysis business owners need to do before deciding if a small business Chapter 11 makes sense. So, you figure out what it cost to run the business every month, then, you know how much you need to [...

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