Several years ago, the Chapter 13 trustees and the bankruptcy judges in the Northern District of Georgia added a new administrative burden to lawyers who file Chapter 13 cases in the Atlanta area.  Under this local rule, within 30 days after the “bar date” for creditors to file claims, lawyers must review all of the [...]

Dairy farmers in Upstate New York are facing a crisis.  While the cost of milk at the grocery store continues to climb, the price dairy farmers receive has not.  Farmers are currently receiving $13.33 per hundredweight.  This is $4.25 below the cost of production in New York, even in the most efficient dairy farms.  Even the safety [...]

You may have purchased something from a company now in bankruptcy, and you have to make a warranty claim.
If the company is in Chapter 11, it will very likely honor your claim for the good will it generates (you’ll tell your friends that it’s okay to do business with the company) even though the company [...]

When an insurance policy pays a damage claim for a totaled car that is involved to a chapter 13, the bankruptcy trustee is required to hold excess money over the amount of the lender’s secured claim according to In re Feher, Southern District of Illinois case Bankruptcy Number 95-30444, Adversary Number 96-3133.  Consequently, the money [...]

In the Southern District of Illinois Bankruptcy Court, one option permits the insurance company to pay the money directly to the car lender.  Another option lets the debtor use the proceeds to purchase a substitute vehicle.
The insurance money is property of the bankruptcy estate under contractual terms that make the money payable to the debtor, [...]

Your homestead exemption is one of the most important benefits you get when you file for bankruptcy.  It protects your residence.  In New York, you can protect up to $50,000 of equity in your home, $100,000 if you file together with your spouse.
You usually get to take the homestead exemption if the property is [...]

As my friend and colleague, Cathy Moran explained in her blog over a year ago, the benefits of filing a bankruptcy mean that the debtor provides information to the bankruptcy court in the papers filed with the court.
This benefits the debtor more than the Court–this honesty.  For full disclosure, the debtor is able to rid [...]

For many years, it was questionable whether a debtor who filed for chapter 7 relief was able to keep expensive real estate at the expense of paying other creditors.  At least 5 cases have come down since the new laws passed in 2005 that held that such high expenses related to residences was an “abuse” [...]

If your Chapter 13 payments are set by the Means Test and not only by mortgage and priority tax arrears, then a Family Medical Leave can reduce your payments.
The Means Test looks at your average monthly income for the six month period ending with the month before your filing.  If you have not yet filed [...]

The United States District Court located in San Diego recently issued an opinion on December 10, 2008, holding that student loans may be discharged in chapter 13 bankruptcy cases where the creditor fails to object after receiving proper notice.  Other cases around the country are also holding the same and the United States Supreme Court [...]