The “Disguised Chapter 7” in Chapter 13: So What’s Wrong With That?

By Rebecca ConnellyMs. Connelly was appointed Chapter 13 Standing Trustee for the Western District of Virginia in 2000.

Can a Chapter 13 plan that is a “disguised Chapter 7” meet the requirements of confirmation? In a recent opinion, Judge Boroff from the District of Massachusetts, expressed his views concerning confirmation of “attorney fee only” plans. In re Buck, 432 B.R. 13, 19-23 (Bankr. D. Mass. 2010). Judge Boroff’s opinion addressed the objections of the Chapter 13 Trustee in two separate cases each alleging that the plans represented a “disguised Chapter . . .

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