City of Chicago v. Fulton And the Turnover Conundrum

By Kara K. Gendron, Esquire, Mott & Gendron Law (Harrisburg, PA)

The recent Supreme Court decision in City of Chicago v. Fulton1 will change the law in most Circuits. Prior to this case, there was a split among the circuits as to whether the post-petition retention of property taken pre-petition constitutes a violation of the automatic stay under §362(a)(3) of the Code, which prohibits “any act . . . to exercise control over property.” The majority view, which included the Second, Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, and Eleventh Circuits, held that such actions . . .

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Tax Projections and the Means Test

September 15, 2019

By Cathy Moran, Esq. (Redwood City, CA) Mention tax calculations to a bankruptcy attorney and 7 out of 10 freeze on the spot. I'm not a tax attorney, they retort. That's right, but, if you are a bankruptcy attorney, that doesn't relieve you from knowing enough tax to get the means test right. Not to mention not giving up your...

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Disregarding Bankruptcy Protections Can be Costly: How Courts Decide Punitive Damages Awards for Stay Violations

December 15, 2019

By Veronica D. Brown-Moseley and Stephen F. Relyea1 The automatic stay serves as a shield that immediately protects debtors in bankruptcy and their property from a host of creditor collection actions ranging from foreclosure, repossession, and garnishment to collection letters and phone calls. In most instances, the filing of a bankruptcy case forces creditors to cease all collection actions and...

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Critical Case Comment – Punitive Damages? Yep.

Henry E. Hildebrand, III

March 10, 2024

Punitive damages can be awarded for a violation of Rule 3002.1 even where there are no compensatory damages, other than attorney’s fees.

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Special Counsel 101: Getting Paid and Protecting Clients

Nicole P. Novak

May 1, 2022

The Bankruptcy Code imposes many duties on attorneys. One such duty requires attorneys to disclose compensation for services in contemplation of, or in connection with a bankruptcy case.1 Debtor attorneys know to disclose their fees at the start of the case. Attorneys that forget to timely file a compensation disclosure typically receive a gentle reminder to do so. However, in...

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Arbitration in Bankruptcy: Reading Opinions & Tea Leaves in Recent Supreme Court & Lower Court Actions

January 20, 2019

By Lawrence R. Ahern III, Brown & Ahern (Nashville, TN) PART I: Statutes, Rules & Supreme Court (In)actions Introduction Click here for Part II Click here for Part III Click here for Part IV What is the effect of an arbitration clause in bankruptcy? When . . . It looks like you are not signed in or registered! This content...

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Objection: Hearsay

July 12, 2020

By Wayne Silver, Wayne Silver Law (Redwood City, CA) There you are, client on the witness stand, judge listening intently, story being told on direct exactly the way you prepared her, things going just swimmingly. And then opposing counsel stands and utters those two lovely words…”Objection, hearsay.” Huh? That’s ridiculous, you confidently think to yourself, just as you hear the...

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Chapter 13 Practice in the Time of COVID-19

March 22, 2020

By Alex Schmidt, Law Clerk to the Honorable John P. Gustafson., Northern District of Ohio at Toledo As the United States begins the process of coming to grips with COVID-19, those who work in the consumer bankruptcy world are going to have to roll with the punches thrown by a global pandemic that is already creating financial chaos throughout the...

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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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The Effect of “Success” (or the Lack of It) on Attorneys’ Fees Part 2: In re Village Apothecary, Inc.

Lawrence R. Ahern, III

October 2, 2022

Introduction In In re Village Apothecary, Inc.,1 the Sixth Circuit recently cut an attorney's fee by half, where the services were not successful. The panel held that the results obtained (or, actually, the lack of results) justified the dramatic reduction of the fees of attorneys for a Chapter 7 trustee. In Part 1, we looked at . . . It...

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Some Federal Protections are Stronger Than Others – Sovereign Immunity, Criminal Restitution, and the Automatic Stay

Jeffrey S. Fraser

August 13, 2023

In this brief synopsis, Fraser compares Lac du Flambeauto a case from the Middle District Court of North Carolina and its connection to the automatic stay.

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