Ethical Issues in Bankruptcy Cases – Part II • NACTT Academy

Ethical Issues in Bankruptcy Cases – Part II

By Paul W. Bonapfel, United States Bankruptcy Judge, Northern District of Georgia1

Conflicts of Interest**

Because of the duty of loyalty that a lawyer owes the client, a lawyer is not permitted to represent a client if representation of the client conflicts with the lawyer’s own interests, the interests of other clients, or the lawyer’s responsibilities to third parties, unless the affected client’s . . .

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By The Honorable William Houston Brown (Retired) Limitations period for actions under FDCPA. Construing the statute of limitations for actions against debt collectors under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), the Supreme Court held that “absent the application of an equitable doctrine, the statute of limitations in § 1692k(d) begins to run on the date on which the alleged...

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Making Sense of the Means Test

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Appointment of Deb Miller

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Georgia Attorney Sanctioned in Debtor’s Seventh Chapter 13 Case

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Apparently, seventh time’s the harm. In this case, aggressive lawyering’ crosses the line.

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By Henry E. Hildebrand, III, Chapter 13 Standing Trustee (Nashville, TN) The Commission heard from several individuals and attorneys that related tales of Chapter 7 trustees negotiating a “carve out” with a lienholder on the debtor’s real property when there was no equity available in the property. The way this works is that when property came into a Chapter 7...

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Tell the Story

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Duty to Update Trustee Regarding Changes Post-Plan Confirmation

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Is there a duty to inform the trustee about changes post-plan confirmation? Yes. There is an inherent duty for the consumer debtor to update the trustee on any and all material changes, particularly windfalls, post plan confirmation. In a very recent case, In Re Robinson, the United States Trustee moved to dismiss debtor’s chapter 13 case because the debtor received...

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After Chicago v Fulton: Not Only Cars – A Survey of Fulton Rulings and a Weakened Automatic Stay

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From the Editor

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By Wm. Houston Brown, United States Bankruptcy Judge (Retired) Attorney Fees - Chapter 13 debtor’s attorney not entitled to recovery under § 330 of fees that were incurred in defending prior attorneys’ sanctions motion. The debtor’s prior attorneys had sought to impose sanctions on the current attorney, and that attorney successfully defended against sanctions. However, the fees incurred by the...

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