The Internal Revenue Service regulates what lawyers (including bankruptcy lawyers) and Certified Public Accountants can tell their clients, at least when they are giving advice about certain tax matters. Lawyers and CPAs and Enrolled Agents are allowed to represent taxpayers in their dealings with the IRS. A government publication, Circular 230, lists the rules that [...]
July 2007
The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 enhanced certain rights and procedures for the benefit of domestic support obligation [DSO] creditors. Section 101(14A) broadly defines DSO to include debts in the nature of alimony, maintenance or support. Section 523(a)(5) makes DSO debt non-dischargeable. Along with these changes, 522(c)(1) included a clarification specifying [...]
Whether Chapter 7 or 13, your meeting will be at the TD Banknorth Center in Room 515 (fifth floor), 1441 Main Street, Springfield. If you are coming from Hampshire or Franklin County, get off at Exit 7 on Interstate 91 South. Turn left at the first traffic light. You will pass under the highway, and [...]
Collection agencies often use incredible scare tactics to get consumers to pay debts. They threaten to garnish wages, put liens on houses, take vehicles, and clean out your bank account. What they don’t tell you is that in order to do any of these things, they have to get a judgment from a court of [...]
Same sex married bankruptcy filers are treated differently from those of opposite sex. The federal Defense of Marriage Act from 1996 defines “marriage” and “spouse” to exclude same sex spouses. In Massachusetts and some other states, same sex spouses may file joint state tax returns but not joint federal tax returns. They also may not file [...]
There are three national credit reporting agencies and they keep tabs on most, if not all, adults in this country and their credit history. They determine a “credit score” based on a magic formula to specify the credit worthiness of each of us. Everybody should be roughly aware of their credit score because that score [...]
