An Alternative to One Size Fits All

By David Peake, Chapter 13 Standing Trustee for the Southern District of Texas (Houston)

There was an interesting development recently in the ongoing topic of the wisdom of adopting a mandatory national form plan (Official Form 113). On January 23, 2015, the Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure of the Judicial Conference of the United States, held a public forum. At this forum, witnesses testified regarding the prudence of adopting Official Form 113.

During his testimony, The Honorable Marvin Isgur, Bankruptcy Judge for the Southern District of Texas, proffered a compromise (see Hearing Transcript PDF pages 37 . . .

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Hanging Paragraph, Cars for Non-Personal Use, and PMSI

November 3, 2019

By Gretchen Holland, Standing Chapter 13 Trustee for the Greenville/Spartanburg Division of South Carolina The hanging paragraph of § 1325(a)(9) prevents bifurcation of a PMSI claim if the collateral securing it was purchased within certain time periods prepetition. A 910-day limitation applies to motor vehicles acquired for the debtor’s personal use. A one-year limitation applies to all other PMSI collateral,...

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Critical Case Comment – Hell Hath No Fury, Until It Meets the S.D. of PA

Henry E. Hildebrand, III

July 31, 2022

Chapter 13 debtor’s profligate, pre-petition spending and post-petition lack of candor, demonstrated that the plan was not proposed in good faith and the petition was not filed in good faith. (Frank) In re Ames, 2022 WL 2195469 (Bankr. E.D. Pa. June 17, 2022) Case Summary In April of 2018, after 10 years of marriage, Guy Ames initiated a divorce complaint...

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From the Editor – Lien Issues

September 15, 2019

By The Honorable William Houston Brown (Retired) Chapter 13 debtor had no authority under § 544. Discussing the split of authority, the Court adopted the majority view that the Code gives § 544 avoidance authority exclusively to the trustee, and the Chapter 13 debtor could not use that power to avoid a mortgage lien. In re Dobbs, _________B.R._________, 2019 WL...

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Supreme Court Agrees to Revisit Finality of Orders in Bankruptcy

May 26, 2019

By Lawrence R. Ahern III, Brown & Ahern (Nashville, TN) Introduction In Ritzen Group, Inc. v. Jackson Masonry, LLC (In re Jackson Masonry, LLC),1 the Sixth Circuit reviewed circuit authority on finality of orders for appellate purposes and affirmed the district court's dismissal of an appeal from an order denying stay relief. The Court of Appeals said that, under 28...

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Meet a Newish Trustee

The Academy

June 18, 2023

By Regina Logsdon, Academy Executive Director Erin M. McCartney was appointed as the Chapter 13 Standing Trustee for the District of Nebraska beginning on January 1, 2022. Erin stepped into metaphorically very large and capable shoes as she replaced retiring Kathleen Laughlin. Erin grew up in Illinois, graduating college from Bradley University in Peoria (Go Braves!). Law school required a...

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Reconversion to Chapter 13 – Betwixt and Between?

Michael B. Joseph

December 29, 2024

From January: “Is it possible to voluntarily convert a chapter 13 case to chapter 7, and later reconvert back to chapter 13? There is a split of authority on whether this maneuver is allowed.”

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Mortgage Loan Modification Does Not Alter Lien Priority

December 6, 2020

By Scott F. Waterman, Chapter 13 Standing Trustee for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (Reading) Modifying a first mortgage is one of the most common loss mitigation tools available to bring a loan current to prevent foreclosure. In this case the first mortgage was modified twice by capitalizing the unpaid interest, reducing the interest rate, and reducing the monthly payments...

Critical Case Comment – 3002.1 and Reverse Mortgages

Henry E. Hildebrand, III

January 23, 2022

Requirements and remedies in Rule 3002.1 apply to reverse mortgages as well as conventional mortgages; while discharge of Chapter 13 plan does not discharge a mortgage obligation treated pursuant to § 1325(b)(5), the court may prohibit prospective use of a nondisclosed obligation as grounds for a default. (Waites) In re Legare-Doctor, 2021 WL 5712149 (Bankr. D. S.C. Dec. 1, 2021)...

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Judicial Year in Review 2021: Part 4 Selected Cases under Parts VIII and IX of the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure

Lawrence R. Ahern, III

December 19, 2021

Introduction Following Part 1's review of the December 1, 2021 changes in the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure, Part 2 and

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Expiration of Debt Limits

The Academy

June 16, 2024

Welp, it doesn’t look like Congress is going to act . . . As you know, Congress temporarily raised the debt limits for Subchapter V and Chapter 13 debtors. These increased debt limits are set to expire on Friday, June 21, 2024. Without further action by Congress, for Chapter 13 filers, the combined unsecured and secured debt limit will fall...