Don’t Give Me That Lamie Excuse For The Increase In Attorney Fee-Only Plans

By John Gustafson, Chapter 13 Trustee (Toledo, OH)

In Lamie v. United States Trustee, 540 U.S. 526, 534, 124 S. Ct. 1023, 157 L. Ed. 2d 1024 (2004), the Supreme Court held that debtors’ attorneys in Chapter 7 cases could not be paid from estate funds.

The concurring judgment in Berliner v. Pappalardo (In re Puffer), 674 F.3d 78, 84-84 (1st Cir. 2012) gave credence to the popular claim that the Lamie decision has had something to do with the increased number of “fee-only” Chapter 13 cases that are being filed around the country . . .

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