A mortgage lender does not automatically get to charge you attorneys fees when you file chapter 13 bankruptcy, the fees must be expressly authorized in the loan documents, a Kansas bankruptcy judge has ruled.
Judge Janice Miller Karlin disallowed fees to U.S. Bank, which included $350 in attorneys fees in its proof of claim for a [...]

Negative equity, GAP insurance, service contracts, and administrative fees rolled into your car loan are not entitled to the special protection for purchase money security interests in cars, a Kansas bankruptcy judge ruled this week in In Re Miller, Case No. 08-40935, (Bankr. D.Kan. December 2, 2008).
The Hon. Janice Miller Karlin ruled the gap insurance [...]

Payments to the chapter 13 bankruptcy trustee for Kansas City, Kansas, now must be sent to a Memphis, TN, lock box.
William H. Griffin, Standing Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Trustee, has changed banks to SunTrust Bank.  He is no longer accepting payments at his Fairway, Kansas, office or at meetings of creditors or court hearings.  Payments to [...]

On MTV each  year, the network promotes a “battle” between two sets of reality show stars:  Real World and Road Rules.    Each show advertises how “real” the show is, showing moment by moment in its young 20-something (or younger) stars’ lives.    And at the end of the show, the new reality stars move on, get [...]

The time to challenge a debtor’s chapter 7 discharge for abuse is counted from the date of the first meeting of creditors, the Kansas District Court ruled on appeal.  See In re Close, Case No. 07-2076-JAR, Bankruptcy case No. 06-20195-7, Turner UST v Close, (2008).
Judge Julie A. Robinson said the U.S. Trustee was too late when it [...]

Kansas has four conflict decisions among the many decisions written on the propriety of taking the car ownership allowance on the means test if your car is paid for and has no lien upon it.  Last week, one Kansas judge reversed herself to follow a BAP opinion.
The Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the U.S. Circuit [...]

The bankruptcy means test does not apply to individual debtors with primarily non-consumer debt such as business debts.  Sounds simple enough, but there is lots of room for argument over the application of this rule.
What is  non-consumer debt?  The bankruptcy code defines consumer debt as debt incurred for personal, family, household purposes. 11 U.S.C. 101(8).  [...]

The income guidelines for bankruptcy eligibility are changing for cases filed October 1, 2008.  The census bureau has announced updated median income figures, which are expected to be adopted by the U.S. Trustee for the bankruptcy means test.
If Kansas is typical, the income guidelines increase slightly.  For example, the guideline for one Kansas earner goes [...]

I am not sure why but almost every case I file the debtor will ask me, “How will the judge know I am telling the truth?” You file your bankruptcy petition and schedules under penalty of perjury.
If you lie, the FBI will investigate the crime and if found you are found guilty you will [...]

Whether you qualify for a Chapter 7 or a Chapter 13 depends in large part to the Means Test. The Means Test uses a standard for the “Operating Cost” of a vehicle as set by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).  The IRS defines Operating Costs as “The operating costs include maintenance, repairs, insurance, fuel, registrations, [...]