Repeat after me: “Bankruptcy stops collection lawsuits. Bankruptcy stops collection judgments.” Now, go write this on the blackboard 100 times.
Bankruptcy is a federal right, direct from the U.S. Constitution. Collection lawsuits are state law and they lose out to the superior federal law.
If anyone tells you otherwise, please PLEASE immediately write [...]

Popularity: 26% [?]

You can still file bankruptcy on a charged-off debt.  Any statement otherwise violates federal law and can put money in your pocket.  Please, PLEASE, immediately write down all details of the call and contact your attorney. 
I must repeat the February 15, 2007 post of my colleague, Susanne Robicsek.  A charge-off is a creditor’s accounting entry [...]

Popularity: 28% [?]

     Mortgage companies routinely ignore Chapter 13 bankruptcy law.
You complete your plan payments, believing you are once again current with the mortgage, having accomplished your goal.
But then, you get a notice from the mortgage company, claiming you still owe them thousands of dollars.  Or, worse still, you just get a notice of a foreclosure sale [...]

Popularity: 47% [?]

In my last blog, I spoke about identity theft arising from proof of claims. This blog is a continuation of that article and contains a copy of the tentative ruling issued by the Judge for two creditors that broke the laws with respect to publishing identity information.
If you liked that post, then try these…Has Your [...]

Popularity: 42% [?]

This last week, Bankruptcy Judge Taylor in the Southern District of California Bankruptcy Court, sanctioned First Future Credit Union and Keypoint Credit Union for failing to redact personal and confidential information belonging to debtors, in the proof of claims they filed in a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Case. While such information may have been unintentionally placed, [...]

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In my first Blog, we explained the differences between in personam and in rem liability and how a discharge affects in personam liability, but not in rem liability. In this part II, we get a little more technical on what the elimination of the in personam liability is all about.
If you liked that post, then [...]

Popularity: 50% [?]

What the heck does that mean? Sounds like Latin. Well, it is. And it is the this very threshold foundation of Bankruptcy that sometimes confuses people the most. When one gets a discharge, what exactly does that mean?
If you liked that post, then try these…When Do I Know Its Right To File For Bankruptcy? [...]

Popularity: 59% [?]

It happens all the time. Someone files a chapter 13 case, lists their creditors to the best of their knowledge, and all of a sudden it’s a feeding frenzy no different than sharks chumming on something bloody at my favorite surf break. But who are these sharks?
If you liked that post, then try these…Pre-Bankruptcy Checks [...]

Popularity: 31% [?]

It happens quite frequently. A lawsuit is filed, supposedly served on the debtor, no response is filed by the debtor in court(since the sewer service usually never notifies the debtor in the first place), default judgment gets entered, and then the consequences: wage garnishments, bank levies, real estate liens. Does bankruptcy help?
If you [...]

Popularity: 33% [?]

Collecting upon a discharged debt is a violation of the Discharge Injunction under 11 USC 524. In the Ninth Circuit, it is punishable by contempt. In the Southern District of California Bankruptcy Court, up until this last week, a lawsuit, called an Adversary Proceeding, could be filed in the Bankruptcy Court to sue the [...]

Popularity: 49% [?]