From the Editor’s Desk – Eligibility and Debtor’s Standing

By The Honorable William Houston Brown (Retired)

Wholly unsecured mortgage was included in unsecured debt for eligibility. Citing a majority of courts holding that the interplay of §§ 506 and 109(e) requires that wholly unsecured junior liens are counted as unsecured debt for eligibility purposes, the court concluded that this view was correct. “Unsecured claim,” as referred to in § 506 should be considered an “unsecured debt” under § 109(e). The court stated that it was not bound by the characterization of a claim in the debtor’s schedules. The case was dismissed for ineligibility, based on . . .

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Critical Case Comment–“No Realistic Future Prospects”

Henry E. Hildebrand, III

March 26, 2023

A 34-year-old Chapter 7 debtor could discharge his student loan obligation by establishing that he could not reasonably make payments on the balance, could not maintain a reasonable standard of living, and because the expiration of his payment term had already passed, his standard of living was likely to persist, with no realistic future prospects. (Silverstein) In re Wolfson, No....

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Appendix – A Review of Residential Mortgage “Stripping,” Recent Developments and the Effect of 11 U.S.C. § 1111(b)

July 18, 2021

A Brief Summary of "Strip Down" and "Strip Off" Rules Lawrence R. Ahern, III Brown & Ahern Nashville, Tennessee Most Academy readers do not need an in-depth primer on lien-stripping, but this Appendix is designed to provide a high-level summary of the most important rules involved, as interpreted by the courts since enactment of the Bankruptcy Code and as affected...

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Done with Taxes This Year? Use 2018 Return to Get 2019 Withholding Right

May 5, 2019

Millions of taxpayers filed a 2018 tax return in the last few weeks, making now a prime time for everyone to consider whether their tax situation came out as they expected. If it didn’t, they can use their recently finished 2018 return and the IRS Withholding Calculator to do a Paycheck Checkup and adjust their withholding. Checking and then adjusting...

Eviction and Bankruptcy Remedies

August 30, 2020

By Wayne Silver, Wayne Silver Law (Redwood City, CA) The 120-day CARES Act eviction moratorium expired on Saturday, July 25. At the expiration of the moratorium, landlords covered by the federal moratorium could begin serving eviction notices, and begin filing eviction lawsuits 30 days thereafter. That means on Monday, August 24, 2020 the moratorium on evictions expired, while we face...

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Critical Case Comment

July 25, 2021

By Henry E. Hildebrand, III, Chapter 13 Standing Trustee (Nashville, TN) Are private educational student loans automatically excepted from discharge by § 523(a)(8). (Jacobs) Homaidan v. Sallie Mae, Inc., Navient Solutions, LLC, 2021 WL 2964217 (2nd Cir. July 15, 2021) Case Summary Hilal Homaidan received a number of educational loans to attend College. Shortly after graduation, he filed a Chapter...

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Ask Ms. Ps and Qs

March 15, 2020

By Professor Nancy Rapoport, University of Nevada Dear Readers: The marvelous, indefatigable Regina Logsdon just forwarded me this hypothetical: Post-confirmation, debtor/client gets upset with attorney. Let’s assume for this scenario that the attorney hasn’t done anything wrong – perhaps just a difference of opinion on a plan modification (or not). Debtor/client says ugly things to attorney – name-calling, etc. THEN...

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Critical Case Comment

February 24, 2019

By Henry E. Hildebrand, III, Chapter 13 Standing Trustee for the Middle District of Tennessee (Nashville) It was impermissible and contrary to the provisions of the Bankruptcy Code for the bankruptcy clerk to enter an order which dismissed a Chapter 13 case based only upon the trustee’s certification that the debtor did not make a timely first payment. (Duncan). No...

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Critical Case Comment – Debtor’s Counsel’s Fee Reduced to $48k

Henry E. Hildebrand, III

February 4, 2022

Chapter 13 debtor’s counsel’s fee award was reduced to $48,116 from the requested $95,480 due to pre-petition payments, confusing and “lumped” time entries, and excessive hourly rates for some services performed, even though the debtor’s Chapter 13 plan was never even proposed much less confirmed. The debtor never attended a meeting of creditors, but the debtor managed to recover his...

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Post-Petition Causes of Action, Inheritances and Windfalls Are Property of the Estate and Must Be Reported to the Trustee – Part 1 of 5

July 14, 2019

By John P. Gustafson, United States Bankruptcy Judge, Northern District of Ohio, Western Division A. Property Acquired After The Filing Of The Chapter 13 Case: The Different Approaches. 1. Property Acquired Post-Petition vs. Property “Vesting In The Debtor”. Click here for Part 2 The broad issue of what becomes property of the Chapter 13 estate post-petition involves consideration of two...

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Chapter 13 Trustee Duties, Powers, And Limitations – Part 4

October 25, 2020

By James J. Robinson, Chief United States Bankruptcy Judge, Northern District of Alabama Exactly whose interests does the trustee represent, and when should the trustee object or move to modify? Hope v. Acorn Financial, Inc., 731 F.3d 1189 (11th Cir. 2013). The Eleventh Circuit held that a chapter 13 trustee who was aware of defects with a secured claim before...

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