The Means Test is one of the biggest changes to Bankruptcy Law passed since Chapter 13 Budget Plans were first formalized in 1938. The means test is supposed to determine whether there is income available for creditors after certain allowable expenses are deducted. A cornerstone of the means test is household size. The number and [...]
Eugene S. Melchionne, Connecticut Bankruptcy Lawyer
Foreclosures in Connecticut are unlike foreclosures in 48 other states.  (Connecticut and Vermont share this weirdness.)  In most cases, a foreclosure does not result in an auction.  Usually, the lender will just come to own your property without an auction.  How does that happen?  Read on. Connecticut is a Title Theory state.  That means that every [...]
Gift cards are the fastest-growing retail and restaurant product to come along in the last ten years. However, there are traps for the unwary consumer. In August 2010, a federal law will ban inactivity fees or monthly service charges on gift cards for the first year after purchase and will prohibit fees on gift cards [...]
The Means Test in bankruptcy treats 401K loan repayments differently under Chapter 7 versus Chapter 13. A recent case in Connecticut reveals that it may make no difference. If your income is such that no money would be available for creditors under Chapter 13 then the deductions may be allowable under Chapter 7 as well. [...]
This week, Connecticut Governor Jodi Rell issued a press release touting the success of the foreclosure mediation program in the state.  She claimed a 75% success rate in mediating foreclosure cases with 2721 cases where the homeowners retained their home.  You know the saying, “There are lies, damn lies and then there are statistics“?  Well here [...]
A Connecticut Bankruptcy Judge has recognized that a person in Chapter 7 may deduct car expenses on the Means Test even if there is no car loan without triggering a presumption of abuse in Bankruptcy. Now there’s a mouthful, but what does it mean? The Means Test was devised by the credit industry to ‘catch’ [...]
