From the Editor – Eligibility

By The Honorable William Houston Brown (Retired)

Debt limits are not jurisdictional and are subject to waiver. In a case filed in 2010, then dismissed for failure to file a plan but reinstated, the bankruptcy court heard evidence in 2012 on a creditor’s motion to dismiss for lack of eligibility. By the time the creditor filed its motion to dismiss, asserting that the debtors exceeded the unsecured limit, the debtors had maintained plan payments for two years, and the creditor had not moved to dismiss when it filed its plan objection. Finding that a majority . . .

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What Else Does the Code Say About Interest and Unsecured Debts?

Ken Siomos

March 31, 2024

While some circuits differ, statutory interpretation suggests similar treatment for secured and unsecured claims regarding interest disallowance, unless context dictates otherwise. Attorney Siomos brings subscribers a follow-up to last week’s article.

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Laudable, Shortsighted, and Vague: The CDC’s Eviction Moratorium

October 18, 2020

By Riley F. Tunnell, Esq., Godwin Bowman PC (Dallas, TX) The COVID-19 pandemic is not the product of a single cause. So, our remedial efforts must address a myriad of causes and rapidly developing effects. The CDC believes that delaying the onset of the mass-eviction to a time when we may be better able to manage this virus is a...

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Think Beyond The Means Test

August 23, 2020

By Cathy Moran, Esq. (Redwood City, CA) It started as a means test question: could emergency medical expenses be deemed non consumer debt. It ended up as a step back to get the bigger picture. Well-seasoned bankruptcy counsel brought the fact pattern to a list serve of colleagues. The prospective debtors’ income in a small consulting corporation is declining, his...

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Don’t Be Dismissive – Rule 41

Cathy Moran

August 6, 2023

I was the third attorney on this lien avoidance matter. Instead of it being “third time’s the charm”, it came close to being “three strikes and you’re out.” All because of FRBP 7041. This was the set up: debtor’s original counsel filed a number of lien avoidance actions, including the one against a landlord with a large default judgment. The...

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Recommendations in Dealing with the Self-Employed Debtor

Andrew B. Finberg

January 25, 2026

Few word combinations sting a Trustee’s office quite like the one-two punch of “self-employed.” The “self-employed” debtor immediately faces additional concerns regarding feasibility.

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Why Listening Is a Bankruptcy Lawyer’s Superpower

Cathy Moran

February 18, 2024

The initial meeting with a prospective bankruptcy client is the most important work I do as a bankruptcy lawyer. It’s also the hardest.

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Guesswork Doesn’t Modify Plans

Henry E. Hildebrand, III

January 4, 2026

Modification of a confirmed Chapter 13 plan cannot be based on speculative, uncertain, and anticipated conditions; the “best interest of creditors test” is determined at the time of confirmation of the original plan and not the confirmation of a modified plan.

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WE LOVE AND WILL MISS YOU, HELEN

Elizabeth Vaughan

July 31, 2022

Helen Morris, the Standing Chapter 13 and 12 Trustee for West Virginia is retiring at the end of this fiscal year. I first met Helen over lunch at NACTT, where we chatted about a non-legal interest we both share, writing fiction. I was delighted to discover, then as now, a friend with a razor wit, a wicked sense of humor...

The Dangers of Extending a Plan Too Long – Or Alternatively, Why Take as Little Time as Possible

April 26, 2020

By Joseph A. Bledsoe, III, Chapter 13 Standing Trustee for the Eastern District of North Carolina (New Bern) Under section 1113(b)(1)(C) of the CARES Act, upon the request of a debtor, and after notice and a hearing, a plan confirmed may be extended up to 7 years from the date the first payment under the original plan came due if...

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The Government Shutdown and Chapter 13 Plan Arrearages – What Do We Do Now?

January 21, 2019

By Jan M. Sensenich, Chapter 13 Standing Trustee for the District of Vermont As we reach the end of the first month of the partial government shutdown, with no end in sight, 800,000 federal workers have started missing their paychecks. As the shutdown continues, Chapter 13 trustees are weighing how best to address the inevitable question from federal government employee...

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From the Editor – Eligibility

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Related Articles

What Else Does the Code Say About Interest and Unsecured Debts?

Laudable, Shortsighted, and Vague: The CDC’s Eviction Moratorium

Think Beyond The Means Test

Don’t Be Dismissive – Rule 41

Recommendations in Dealing with the Self-Employed Debtor

Why Listening Is a Bankruptcy Lawyer’s Superpower

Guesswork Doesn’t Modify Plans

WE LOVE AND WILL MISS YOU, HELEN

The Dangers of Extending a Plan Too Long – Or Alternatively, Why Take as Little Time as Possible

The Government Shutdown and Chapter 13 Plan Arrearages – What Do We Do Now?

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