What the FICO? Reaffirming Doesn’t Help My Credit Score?

By The Honorable John P. Gustafson, United States Bankruptcy Judge, Northern District of Ohio (Toledo)

Reaffirmation hearings during the pandemic have been difficult, at least for me. The economic risks for debtors are greater. There are uncertainties about the availability of credit, and the availability of suitable vehicles. Prices of used cars have gone up – with stimulus money pushing up the demand for used cars, and a chip shortage making new cars scarce – this also means that the values of the vehicles securing the loans being reaffirmed on may have also gone up.

But the fact that the . . .

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Critical Case Comment – Debtor Refuses to Give Location of Surrendered Mercedes; Pleads the Fifth

Henry E. Hildebrand, III

December 26, 2021

Where a Chapter 7 debtor fails to disclose the location of his Mercedes which he intended to surrender, fails to produce documents relating to the ownership of his property, and invokes his Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination, the Court appropriately denied the debtor a discharge. (Preston) In re Appleby, 2021 WL 5121854 (Bankr. S.D. Ohio, Nov. 3, 2021) Case Summary...

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Critical Case Comment

Henry E. Hildebrand, III

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From the Supreme Court – Miller v. US

The Honorable William Houston Brown

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In bankruptcy cases, creditors are usually required to return payments made shortly before the debtor's filing. On Monday, in United States v. Miller, the justices considered whether this rule also applies to the IRS.

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By Michael J. McCormick, Esq., McCalla Raymer Leibert Pierce, LLC (Roswell, GA) Escrow 101 – Part 1 Escrow 101 - Part 2 Escrow 101 – Part 3 Escrow 102 – Part 2

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Naliko Markel

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Analyzing the Troubled Chapter 13 During COVID19

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By Cathy Moran, Esq. (Redwood City, CA) After the pandemic, when the economy lurches back into motion, bankruptcy lawyers will confront a clutch of troubled Chapter 13 cases. In the face of disruption, distress, and the unknown, we'll be called on to guide clients forward, in one direction or another. Let's review the questions we'll need to answer in order...

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From the Editor – Eligibility

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By The Honorable William Houston Brown (Retired) Disputed claim included in calculation of eligibility. The debtor’s case was dismissed for exceeding § 109(e)’s unsecured debt limit, when the debtor had signed $1,092,000 mortgage note but the mortgage was never recorded. The lender filed an unsecured claim for $1.7 million, and the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel agreed with the bankruptcy court that...

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Henry E. Hildebrand, III

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There is a presumption that the trustee will make disbursements under a confirmed Chapter 13 plan and the debtor bears the burden of demonstrating sufficient grounds to justify acting as her own disbursing agent.

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Three Last Things Trustees Should Know About the Small Business Reorganization Act of 2019 – Part V

November 17, 2019

By Lawrence R. Ahern, III, Brown & Ahern (Nashville, TN) Introduction This series focuses on four bankruptcy-related bills that were enacted during the 116th Congress and signed into law on August 23, 2019.1 One bill, the Small Business Reorganization Act of 2019 (SBRA),2 appears in its entirety in Appendix B to this series and was summarized in

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Critical Case Comment–“No Realistic Future Prospects”

Henry E. Hildebrand, III

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