Where There’s “Foreclosure Abuse” Smoke, There’s “Foreclosure Abuse” Fire

By Laura Grace, Research Assistant to Professor Michaela White, Creighton University School of Law, Omaha, NE

In 2011, ProPublica, a non-profit investigative journalism newsroom, started looking into the Office of the Comptroller of Currency’s (OCC) foreclosure review process. ProPublica smelled the smoke that lead to Yves Smith’s investigative report on the shut-down of the review process and the multi-billion dollar settlement of claims against many of the largest mortgage servicing companies.

The OCC, as part of a consent order with federal bank . . .

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Trustee Cannot Require Debtor to Treat Nondischargeable Student Loan Debts in a Separate Class

August 25, 2019

By Gretchen D. Holland, Standing Chapter 13 Trustee for the Greenville/Spartanburg Division of South Carolina The Bankruptcy Code does not – and thus a trustee cannot – require a debtor to treat nondischargeable student loan debts in a separate class from other general unsecured claims under § 1322(b)(1), even when including them all in the same pool will result in...

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Obtaining Credit in Chapter 13 – Did the Amendment to FRBP 4001(c) Eliminate Motions to Incur Additional Credit?

March 1, 2020

By Nathan E. Curtis and Peter Francis Geraci, Geraci Law LLC (Chicago, IL) Time does not stand still while a debtor is in Chapter 13. Nor do income and expenses. Ideally, consumer debtors who have filed a chapter 13 would not need to obtain credit during the term of their plan. Unfortunately, circumstances sometimes get in the way. The most...

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What Does “Following” Mean?

Kara K. Gendron

April 2, 2023

Section in 109(g)(2) of the Bankruptcy Code bars a debtor from filing a new case for 180 days if the Debtor voluntarily dismisses a case “following” a motion for relief. Not surprisingly, courts are split on how they interpret the word “following” as used in § 109(g)(2). After all, the word “following” is not limited to one definition, or even...

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Ask Ms. Ps and Qs

Nancy B. Rapoport

May 14, 2023

Dear Readers: Want to know why your 1L Civ Pro course is your best friend when it comes to “undue hardship” cases? Because burdens of proof matter. (They matter in other cases, too, but I’m in love with the case of Love v. U.S. Dept. of Education (In re Love), Case No. 19-20532-C-7, United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern...

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In the Trenches: Secrets to Settlement – Competency in the Courtroom Part 2 of 3

June 16, 2019

By Jan Hamilton, Chapter 13 Trustee (Topeka, KS) Click here for Part 1 of 3 8. Early Preparation for Trial As suggested, the best way to settle a case is to be willing to try that case, which means you must prepare from the get go. That preparation begins a long time before the eve of trial, namely, at the...

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Pump the Brakes: Bad Faith Debtors Are Not Gaming the System (Part II)

January 27, 2019

By Kathryne M. Shaw1 Boleman Law Firm, P.C. (Virginia Beach, VA) Click here for Part 1 In Part I of this article, we reviewed In re Holman, in which the debtors violated their confirmation order and exhibited bad faith . . . It looks like you are not signed in or registered! This content is only available to members. Join...

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Meet a Brand Spankin’ New Trustee

The Academy

August 7, 2022

William F. Jaworski, Jr. - Bill - was appointed Chapter 13 Standing Trustee for the District of Delaware on April 1, 2022. Jaworski has very large shoes to fill as he is taking over for Michael Joseph upon his well-deserved retirement. Jaworski was born and raised in Buffalo, New York. As a hometown boy, he didn’t venture too far away...

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From the Editor – Confirmation

March 8, 2020

By The Honorable William Houston Brown (Retired) Good faith in plan proposal. Plan was proposed in good faith, although petition was filed only 21 days after purchase of vehicle, when plan adequately protected creditor against risk of depreciation. Opinion reviews good faith factors for plan proposal. In re Sharp, 608 B.R. 546 (Bankr. D. Kan. 2019). Compare In re Broder,...

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Critical Case Comment – And There is Also Blanco

October 31, 2021

By Henry E. Hildebrand, III, Chapter 13 Standing Trustee for the Middle District of Tennessee (Nashville) Rule 3002.1 gives the Bankruptcy Court authority to impose sanctions, including punitive sanctions, as part of the rules-granted authority to award “other appropriate relief.” (Rodriguez) Blanco v. Bayview Loan Servicing LLC (In re Blanco), 2021 WL 4190170 (Bankr. S.D. Tex. September 14, 2021) Case...

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Social Media Scams: Con Artists Target the Vulnerable

Michael B. Joseph

July 23, 2023

Social media and internet dating sites have given rise to romance and confidence schemes. Catfishing and spear phishing are extensively used. Catfishing is faking an identity on the internet. Spear phishing uses more sophisticated and direct messages to trick the victim. New AI programs make it easier to reach and victimize the targets. The fraudsters prey upon the elderly, widowed...

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