Supreme Court Corner

By M. Jonathan Hayes, Certified Bankruptcy Specialist, Northridge, CA

Lamie v. United States Trustee, 540 U.S. 526 (2004)

Issue: Does the debtor’s attorney in a chapter 11 case have the right to fees after the case is converted to chapter 7 when his efforts benefit the estate but he has not been retained by the trustee or approved in advance by the court?

Holding: No

Justice Anthony Kennedy, Stevens concurred joined by Souter and Breyer

Section 330(a)(1) provides . . .

It looks like you are not signed in or registered! This content is only available to members.

Or Sign In Below:

No Author Biography has been linked to this Article.

The Irony of Filing a Motion to Dismiss with Prejudice

April 12, 2020

By Daryl J. Smith, Senior Staff Attorney to Sylvia Ford Brown, Chapter 13 Standing Trustee (Memphis, TN) Are chapter 13 serial filers abusing the bankruptcy system? Maybe or maybe not. There are many reasons debtors file multiple bankruptcy cases across the nation, including but not limited to parking tickets, court fines, utilities, lack of financial literacy, foreclosure, past due rent,...

Members

Ask Ms. Ps & Qs

December 13, 2020

By Professor Nancy Rapoport Dear Readers: The ConsiderChapter13.org staff has, once again, raised an important ethics issue: how far does the attorney-client privilege go? In Taylor Lohmeyer Law Firm v. United States,1 the Fifth Circuit had to wrestle with that issue after the law firm (Taylor Lohmeyer) claimed a blanket attorney-client privilege for all documents that were subject to the...

Johnson Retires

September 29, 2019

By Academy Staff Jan P. Johnson served as a Chapter Standing 13 Trustee for the Eastern District of California, Sacramento Division, from 1998 to September 30, 2019. Prior to this appointment, he served as Chapter 13 Standing Trustee for the District of Puerto Rico from 1989 where he was responsible for over 25,000 cases. He was also appointed as Standing...

Why Creditors Should Get Less in Chapter 13

Cathy Moran

October 30, 2022

Spending every dollar they make, and then some, is often how our Chapter 13 clients got into financial trouble. Yet Chapter 13, as practiced, validates the practice of continuing to spend 100% of each month’s income during the life of the plan. In doing so, we, as a society, squander the chance to use Chapter 13 to teach new budgeting...

Members

Passive Retention: A Creditor’s Right or an Act to Exercise Control?

April 14, 2019

By John Andreasen and Patrick Lombardi, Law Students at the University of Illinois College of Law and Duberstein Moot Court Team Members Both consumers and businesses often depend on motor vehicles for their livelihood or, for consumers, access to health care, child care, or other essential services. A creditor’s repossession of a motor vehicle can turn into an existential crisis...

Members

Conflicting Interpretations: A Chapter 13 Trustee’s Compensation After Pre-Confirmation Dismissal or Conversion*Part 1 of 3

Brittani Bushman

January 30, 2022

(Used with expressed permission from the MI Bankruptcy Journal and the Steven W. Rhodes Consumer Bankruptcy Conference) I. Introduction Although the Bankruptcy Code has been around for decades, bankruptcy courts continue to be faced with significant disputes regarding the interpretation of its provisions. An emerging issue that has gained traction in recent years involves the compensation of a chapter 13...

Members

Three Last Things Trustees Should Know About the Small Business Reorganization Act of 2019 – Part V

November 17, 2019

By Lawrence R. Ahern, III, Brown & Ahern (Nashville, TN) Introduction This series focuses on four bankruptcy-related bills that were enacted during the 116th Congress and signed into law on August 23, 2019.1 One bill, the Small Business Reorganization Act of 2019 (SBRA),2 appears in its entirety in Appendix B to this series and was summarized in

Members

Small Business Reorganization Postscript 2

April 12, 2020

SMALL BUSINESS REORGANIZATION ACT POSTSCRIPT #2 Recommendation of Technical Amendment to Repair Flaw in CARES Act Attempt to Increase Small Business Eligibility under SBRA Introduction In a bulletin published March 30, the Academy announced enactment on March 27 of the "Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act" (the "CARES Act"),1 and that the Act (applying only to cases commenced on...

Members

2 Million ITINs Set to Expire in 2019; To Avoid Refund Delays Apply Soon

October 13, 2019

Taxpayers with expiring Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITINs) can get their ITINs renewed more quickly and avoid refund delays next year by submitting their renewal application soon, the Internal Revenue Service said 10/10/19. An ITIN is a tax ID number used by taxpayers who don’t qualify to get a Social Security number. Any ITIN with middle digits 83, 84 ....

Members

In re Lazaro: Non-Monetary Default and § 1322(b)(5)

James M. Davis

June 4, 2023

Can a debtor provide for a non-debtor’s loan under § 1322(b)(5) even if the plan does not address a non-monetary default on the claim? In re Lazaro suggests the answer may be “yes.” In that case, the Court held not only that the Debtor’s plan could provide to cure a monetary default on a loan taken out by the Debtor’s...

Members