Navigating Secured Creditors Who File Unsecured Chapter 13 Claims

By Eric K. Fox, Esq. (Hendersonville, TN)

Jane Debtor has a home with a mortgage. An unsecured creditor obtains a judgment against Jane for, say, a credit card debt. Creditor’s attorney records a certified copy of the judgement order with the county register of deeds, thereby converting the unsecured claim against Jane in personam, to a secured claim against her personally and her real property in rem.

Debtor then files a Chapter 13 plan which provides for all her debt, including the secured judgement lien claim. The plan provides that after . . .

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Chapter 13 Practice in the Time of COVID-19

March 22, 2020

By Alex Schmidt, Law Clerk to the Honorable John P. Gustafson., Northern District of Ohio at Toledo As the United States begins the process of coming to grips with COVID-19, those who work in the consumer bankruptcy world are going to have to roll with the punches thrown by a global pandemic that is already creating financial chaos throughout the...

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Notice of Error Regarding Misinformation Given During Phone Call to Mortgage Servicer

The Academy

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There is no special language/verbiage. Keep is simple. Stick to one issue per NOE. Pertinent loan/debtor information – “name, rank, and serial number” Called bank twice. Tried to get borrower reviewed for FHA Recovery Mod. Both times I was essentially told that the loan was “too many months delinquent” to be reviewed for FHA Recovery Mod. I was also told...

Critical Case Comment–IRS and the “Innocent Spouse”

Henry E. Hildebrand, III

May 14, 2023

Bankruptcy courts lack jurisdiction to apply “innocent spouse” relief to determine the amount of a tax claim to be paid in a Chapter 13 case. (Taddonio) In re Geary, 2023 WL 2996720 (Bankr. W.D. Pa. April 19, 2023) Case Summary When a taxpayer signs a joint tax return with their spouse, the Internal Revenue Code is very clear. Both signatories...

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Did Congress Mean What It Said in Section 1328(i)?

April 25, 2021

By Pardis Akhavan, Resnik Hayes Moradi LLP (Encino, CA) The bankruptcy court in In re Ritter, 2021 WL 864092 (Bkrtcy C.D. Cal, 2021)(J. Tighe),denied debtors’ motion for an immediate discharge under Section 1328(i) ruling that Congress apparently did not intend that a chapter 13 debtor who obtains a loan modification should also receive a discharge, on that basis alone at...

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Still Trying to Apply Taggart: Fourth Circuit Vacates Beckhart v. Newrez, LLC

Lawrence R. Ahern, III

May 15, 2022

Background - In re Taggart In 2019, the Supreme Court rendered its opinion in In re Taggart,1 which was the subject of earlier analyses: (1) Is a Finding of Contempt Precluded by a "Good Faith" but Unreasonable Belief that an Action Does Not Violate the Discharge Injunction?; (2) Looking Beyond . . . It looks like you are not signed...

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Retirement of the Honorable John E. Hoffman, Jr., Chief Judge

The Academy

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Automatic Stay Denial of Stay Relief was Final and Appealable, Although It Was “Without Prejudice.”

The Honorable William Houston Brown

April 10, 2022

Selected Consumer Opinions Since January 1, 2022 Automatic Stay Denial of stay relief was final and appealable, although it was “without prejudice.”Deciding an issue not addressed in Ritzen Grp., Inc. v. Jackson Masonry, LLC, 140 S.Ct. 582 (2020), the Ninth Circuit concluded that the bankruptcy court’s order denying stay relief was final and appealable, despite its “without prejudice” language, because...

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Critical Case Comment – Topping Off the Risk Factor

Henry E. Hildebrand, III

September 3, 2023

To pay present value to a secured creditor, a reorganization plan may start with a treasury rate and add a risk factor and need not start with a prime rate plus a risk factor.

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Dollar Amount Increases in Bankruptcy Code

March 3, 2019

By William Houston Brown, United States Bankruptcy Judge, Retired; Editor/Adviser, The Academy On April 1, 2019, an increase takes effect in those dollar amounts in the Bankruptcy Code that are subject to adjustment every three years.1 The following increases have significance in everything from the eligibility maximums for filing under Chapters 12 and 13 to the debtor’s exemptions. Relevant Official...

Critical Case Comment – How Many Cats?

Henry E. Hildebrand, III

August 7, 2022

Even though the Chapter 13 debtor’s 36 cats were property of the estate, the county animal control office could pursue possession of the cats and resulting disposition (by way of adoption). (Hagenau) In re Karen Mitchell-Smith, 2022 WL 2195466 (Bankr. N.D. Ga. June 17, 2022) Case Summary Sometime in 2021, Henry County Animal Control took possession of 36 cats that...