Small Business Reorganization Postscript 2

On May 9th, the 2nd Circuit issued an opinion in Soussis v. Macco joining other Circuits holding that the Bankruptcy Code does not permit a Chapter 13 Trustee to retain the percentage fees collected on payments that a chapter 13 debtor made pre-confirmation in accordance with 26 U.S.C. §586 but, upon dismissal prior to confirmation of the plan, is obligated to return the fee to the debtor, as required by § 1326.

Judges of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit have appointed J. Barrett Marum as the next bankruptcy judge on the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of California.

The amendments to the Bankruptcy Rules that took effect on December 1, 2024, are primarily stylistic, but they do include a few substantive changes. More controversial changes are in the pipeline for December 2025, however, with significant changes to Rule 3002.1 proposed.

Community property works differently in bankruptcy. I probably don’t have to tell you that. On the issue of assets and debts, community property is pretty straightforward. All of the community property comes into the estate upon the commencement of a bankruptcy case, even when only one spouse files. §541(a)(2). Every creditor with a right to be paid from the community can file a claim, regardless of which spouse incurred the debt. §101(7). So creditors of the nonfiling spouse are proper claimants in the filing spouse’s bankruptcy case. If the bankruptcy estate contains separate property as well, §726 creates a distribution scheme that segregates community assets from separate property assets in paying community and non community debts. So far pretty straightforward. Right?

This is the first in a series of resources intended to simplify and facilitate the search for and application of certain bankruptcy rules relevant to chapter 13 practice. This article will look at four fundamental rules relating to general motion practice: Rules 9013, 9006, 9007, and 9014.