Do I Really Have to Tell the Trustee About Newly Acquired Assets?

It has long been a vexing question for Trustees and attorneys alike: do Debtors have to disclose assets acquired post-petition? In a lengthy and well-documented opinion, Chief Bankruptcy Court Judge John Waites of South Carolina has presented his take on this issue and concluded, with some important exceptions, that they do not. The case is In re Thomas L. Boyd, Bankr. S.C., #13-02924-JW (7/17/20 opinion).

The Debtor filed his Chapter 13 case in May, 2013. In July, 2018, while still in Chapter 13, he suffered injuries from an . . .

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Herbert L. Beskin

Chapter 13 Standing Trustee for the Western District of Virginia (Retired) (Charlottesville)

Herbert L. Beskin practiced consumer bankruptcy law for 25 years in Charlottesville before being appointed a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Trustee for the Western District of Virginia in 2003. He has been a Virginia CLE lecturer since 1993, has written articles for The Virginia Lawyer and The NACTT Academy’s website ConsiderChapter13.org, and has taught law related courses at both the University of Virginia and Piedmont Virginia Community College. From 1991 to 1997 he served on the Board of Governors of the Bankruptcy Law Section of the Virginia State Bar. He has co-authored two chapters of the Virginia CLE publication Bankruptcy Practice in Virginia: Chapter 7 practice in the 1st edition with Douglas Little, and Chapter 13 practice in the 2nd and 3rd editions with Judge Rebecca Connelly. Herb retired in 2023.

If You’re Gonna Bet the Farm, Maybe Play Against the House

Danielle N. Gueck-Townsend

January 30, 2022

Gambling is inherently risky, but that rings even more true when a bankruptcy is involved. Section 727(a)(5) allows for denial of discharge if “the debtor has failed to explain satisfactorily, …. any loss of assets or deficiency of assets to meet the debtor’s liabilities.” 11 U.S.C. §727(a)(5). Recently, Bankruptcy Judge Timothy A. Barnes in Chicago wrote an opinion in which...

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The Hunt for Deductible Interest – Money Too Often Left on the Table

February 16, 2020

By Cathy Moran, Esq. (Redwood City, CA) One of the mysteries of Chapter 13 is why mortgage lenders don’t send an IRS 1098 for mortgage payments made through a Chapter 13 plan. And without that reminder piece of paper, our clients don’t realize that much of what the trustee pays to mortgage creditors is deductible interest. Miss that deduction and...

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William E. Heitkamp (44)

David G. Peake

December 17, 2023

At the end of this calendar year, after 44 years, the Southern District of Texas and the bankruptcy community will lose one of our standard bearers. William E. Heitkamp, “Bill” was appointed Chapter 13 Trustee in 1979. His appointment came shortly after the Bankruptcy Reform Act of 1978 became law.

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2020 Vision

February 14, 2021

By Jan Sensenich, Chapter 13 Standing Trustee for the District of Vermont I think it was in junior high school when I first started wearing glasses. I remember not liking the idea of having to wear glasses. I thought I could see just fine. As far as I knew, I was seeing what I needed to see. But I also...

SBRA – The Sequel: Leases in Bankruptcy Under the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 (“CAA”)

February 21, 2021

Lawrence R. Ahern, III, Brown & Ahern (Nashville, TN) Appendix 11 U.S.C. § 365(d)(3) and (4), Showing Changes Made by Consolidated Appropriation Act, 2021 ("CAA"), Pub. L. 116-260, 134 Stat. 1182 (eff. Dec. 27, 2020) (Sunset December 27, 2022. Changes continue to apply in cases commenced before sunset under subchapter V of Chapter 11.) 11 U.S.C. § 365(d)(3) Pre-CAA Post-CAA...

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From the Editor

September 20, 2020

By The Honorable William Houston Brown (Retired) Chapter 13 debtor lacked “person aggrieved” standing to appeal objection to trustee’s final report. The bankruptcy court had overruled the debtor’s objection to the trustee’s final report, and debtor’s appeal was dismissed, with the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel finding that debtor lacked “person aggrieved” standing to appeal. Debtor’s objection had not included amount of...

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Ask Ms. Ps & Qs

Nancy B. Rapoport

November 26, 2023

“ . . . how can I not write about an opinion that begins, “This is a case of sue first and ask questions later”? We all know that Judge Christopher Klein has a way with words and a precise and methodical way of approaching statutory analysis.”

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Critical Case Comment – Although a Mess, Month-to-Month Lease Assumed

Henry E. Hildebrand, III

June 4, 2023

A month-to-month residential lease can be assumed and defaults cured in a Chapter 13 plan. (Rucker) In re Mattoon, 2022 WL 2080184 (Bankr. E.D. Tenn. June 9, 2022) Case Summary Sarah Mattoon executed a lease with Open Doors in September of 2019. Several of Ms. Mattoon’s family members lived with her in the rented apartment including her “companion” and her...

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From the Editor – Plan Modification

March 21, 2021

By The Honorable William Houston Brown (Retired) For modification purposes, best interests test remains at petition date. In an examination of post-confirmation sale of the debtor’s home that yielded excess of homestead exemption, the Court concluded that the best-interests of creditors’ calculation was performed as of the petition date, rather than time of modification. Section 1329 does not provide a...

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Can Good Facts Also Make Bad Law? Finality of Orders in Bankruptcy Revisited after Ritzen Group

Lawrence R. Ahern, III

March 20, 2022

"Finality" in Bankruptcy When is an order within a bankruptcy case "final"? When must a party to the proceeding appeal within 14 days? When may a party either seek interlocutory review or sit back and wait until something more occurs to make the order final? Final orders are appealable. In civil actions, this is a relatively easy proposition to apply...

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