A Brief Guide to Analyzing the Fairness of Student Loan Discrimination*

By Samuel Dart, Attorney Representing Chapter 13 Trustee David M. Howe, Tacoma, Washington

As student loan debt continues to grow, so too does the frequency of attempts to deal with this nondischargeable millstone in a chapter 13 plan. Although judges across the country seem more interested in challenging the standards for hardship discharge of student loans, especially those set forth in the Brunner test, the fact remains that most debtors are not eligible to discharge student loan debt in bankruptcy. This reality has led to debtors attempting to separately classify student loans from other unsecured creditors in a . . .

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Per Capita Bankruptcy Filings Heat Map

November 24, 2019

____________________________ Prior to his appointment as a bankruptcy judge for the District of Utah in September of 2015, Judge Anderson served for seventeen years as the Standing Chapter 13 Trustee for the District of Utah. During this time, he administered over 70,000 Chapter 13 cases. Judge Anderson was elected president of the National Association of Chapter 13 Trustees (NACTT), and...

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The Bankruptcy Moot Court Experience – Duberstein 2019

August 25, 2019

By Cameron Kelly & Michael Carroll, Law Students, The University of Texas School of Law I. Starting the Journey Instead of starting class by cold-calling people, Professor Westbrook chose to suspend my terror briefly. While I was thankful for the reprieve from what would inevitably be a disappointing cold call, I was more thankful for what he had to say....

Sub V Update

Paul W. Bonapfel

April 14, 2024

Many of you are familiar with the extensive outline on Sub Chapter V that the Honorable Paul W. Bonapfel, United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Georgia, produces. This is a FREE resource and is freshly updated!! Thank you Judge Bonapfel!

Bankruptcy’s Eternal Struggle

May 10, 2020

By Cathy Moran, Esq. (Redwood City, CA) The timeless questions asked by mankind include “why are we here“, “which came first ...” and “coffee or tea“. Bankruptcy lawyers wrestle with “which controls, b-22 or Schedules I and J“. Having argued and lost the Pak case when BAPCPA was new, and felt vindicated when

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From the Editor – Dismissal

August 2, 2020

By The Honorable William Houston Brown (Retired) Marijuana connection required case dismissal. The Chapter 13 debtors owned interests in an entity that was engaged in litigation to recover damages for breach of contract related to growing and selling marijuana, and this connection required dismissal of the case. Continuing administration of the case “would likely require the trustee or the court...

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Meet Another Trustee

February 10, 2019

In June of 2017 Michele T. Hatcher was appointed Chapter 13 Standing Trustee for the Northern District of Alabama, Northern Division. Ms. Hatcher replaces retiring Trustee Michael Ford. She maintains her office in the quaint Southern town of Decatur which is nicknamed “The River City” because it is on the banks of Wheeler Lake, along the Tennessee River. Prior to...

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Are Your Loyalties Divided?

August 22, 2021

By Cathy Moran, Esq., (Redwood City, CA) When a married couple books a bankruptcy consultation, you have an immediate problem: There be dragons, as early map makers helpfully provided. Because, as a lawyer friend of mine says: Anytime there are two people sitting across from you, you have a conflict of interest. That pithy expression has stuck with me and...

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The Uneasy Co-Existence of Federal and State Consumer Remedies in Bankruptcy Cases – the Fourth Circuit Weighs In

Mark C. Leffler

October 15, 2023

“Why do I need the FDCPA if there’s already a remedy under Rule 3001?” This is what the bankruptcy judge asked me when I brought an adversary proceeding against a claims buyer, alleging potential class claims under both the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”) and Bankruptcy Rule 3001(c)(2). The defendant had a business practice of filing high volumes of...

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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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From the Editor

March 24, 2019

By Wm. Houston Brown, United States Bankruptcy Judge (Retired) Discharge - Direct mortgage payments unpaid by debtor were not “provided for” in plan. The confirmed plan stated that the debtor would directly pay two home mortgages to the credit union, but there was no specification of payment terms or other treatment of those mortgages. At the time of confirmation, the...

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