How My Law Firm Learned to Stop Leaving Money on the Table Part 2 – The “Other Appropriate Relief” of Rule 3001 • NACTT Academy

How My Law Firm Learned to Stop Leaving Money on the Table Part 2 – The “Other Appropriate Relief” of Rule 3001

At my firm, we see a lot of consumers who have some combination of high debt and low income. Many of them arrive for their consultations after having been abused by debt collectors and predatory lenders, harmed by mortgage servicing errors, or subjected to inaccurate and derogatory credit reporting. Until fairly recently, after filing bankruptcies for these folks, we usually didn’t even consider pursuing remedies under consumer protection statutes like the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA), and the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). This is mostly because we didn’t . . .

It looks like you are not signed in or registered! This content is only available to members.

Or Sign In Below:

Mark C. Leffler

Consumer Litigation Associates, Newport News, VA

Mark C. Leffler is a federal civil litigator with Consumer Litigation Associates, a nationally recognized leader in consumer advocacy based in Virginia. Mark has spent most of his career litigating in Bankruptcy Court, including bringing numerous actions against debt collectors, mortgage companies, and predatory lenders in bankruptcy. He is President of the NACTT Academy for Consumer Bankruptcy Education, is a frequent author for the NACTT Academy’s webzine at ConsiderChapter13.org, and has served as a panelist at numerous annual conferences of the National Association of Chapter Thirteen Trustees (NACTT). Mark is AV® rated by Martindale Hubbell, he was selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America for his work in bankruptcy and debtor rights, and he is a frequent speaker and author on bankruptcy matters for Virginia CLE programs. Mark is a native of Williamsburg, Virginia, and he received his law degree from Duquesne University School of Law in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He is a member of the National Association of Consumer Advocates, Virginia State Bar, Bankruptcy Section, and the Richmond Bankruptcy Bar Association.

U.S. Trustee Fee Unconstitutional

The Honorable William Houston Brown

June 12, 2022

On June 6, the Supreme Court’s unanimous opinion in Siegel v. Fitzgerald1 held that the increase in U.S. Trustee fees in Chapter 11 cases violated the uniformity requirement of the Constitution’s Bankruptcy Clause,2 because the fee increase in 2017 only applied to in the U.S. Trustee districts and didn’t apply to the Bankruptcy Administrator districts in Alabama and North Carolina....

Turnover by Motion? How About Under Rule 6008?

February 28, 2021

By Joseph A. Bledsoe, III (“Jody”), Chapter 13 Standing Trustee for the Eastern District of North Carolina (New Bern) In the aftermath of City of Chicago v. Fulton, discussions abound as to whether it is sufficient for a chapter 13 debtor to seek return of his vehicle, repossessed prepetition, via a motion for turnover. Most seem to believe a motion...

Members

Section 302: Joint but Separate

Queneshia Fleming

September 24, 2023

“The ambiguity of § 302 raises the question:are jointly administered cases two separate estates? If jointly administered cases are two separate estates, are trustees doing it wrong?”

Members

Who Files the Tax Returns Under SBRA

June 7, 2020

By Steven L. Walker, Esq. (San Jose, CA) Subchapter V of the newly amended Bankruptcy Code is silent on the question as to whether the debtor-in-possession, or the court appointed trustee, must file the entity’s income tax returns on Form 1065, Form 1120, or Form 1120S. Although the IRS also has not issued any formal guidance, answers can be found...

Members

New Trustee Named

The Academy

September 10, 2023

Andrew B. Finberg has been appointed as a Chapter 13 Standing Trustee for the District of New Jersey. Finberg is picking up the mantle left by happily retiring Isabel Balboa.

Critical Case Comment–IRS and the “Innocent Spouse”

Henry E. Hildebrand, III

May 14, 2023

Bankruptcy courts lack jurisdiction to apply “innocent spouse” relief to determine the amount of a tax claim to be paid in a Chapter 13 case. (Taddonio) In re Geary, 2023 WL 2996720 (Bankr. W.D. Pa. April 19, 2023) Case Summary When a taxpayer signs a joint tax return with their spouse, the Internal Revenue Code is very clear. Both signatories...

Members

Meet the New Trustee

November 1, 2020

Lloyd T. Kraus was appointed as a Chapter 13 Standing Trustee for the Eastern District of Texas on August 1, 2019. While Kraus loves his job, he would much rather still be serving as a staff attorney to his best friend and mentor John Talton. Talton was tragically killed in a traffic accident in October of 2018. Kraus received his...

Members

From the Editor – Lien Issues

September 15, 2019

By The Honorable William Houston Brown (Retired) Manufactured home did not become accession to real property. The creditor holding security interest in a manufactured home objected to confirmation, on the basis that § 1322(b)(2)’s anti-modification provision prevented bifurcation of its claim into secured and unsecured parts. The Eighth Circuit noted that the Bankruptcy Code does not resolve the issue of...

Members

Dollar Amount Increases in Bankruptcy Code

March 3, 2019

By William Houston Brown, United States Bankruptcy Judge, Retired; Editor/Adviser, The Academy On April 1, 2019, an increase takes effect in those dollar amounts in the Bankruptcy Code that are subject to adjustment every three years.1 The following increases have significance in everything from the eligibility maximums for filing under Chapters 12 and 13 to the debtor’s exemptions. Relevant Official...

Six Things Taxpayers Should Know About the Sharing Economy and Their Taxes

May 5, 2019

From renting spare rooms and vacation homes to car rides or using a bike…name a service and it’s probably available through the sharing economy. Taxpayers who participate in the sharing economy can find helpful resources in the IRS Sharing Economy Tax Center on IRS.gov. It helps taxpayers understand how this activity affects their taxes. It also gives these taxpayers information...