Angela M. Scolforo was appointed as the Chapter 13 Standing Trustee for the Western District of Virginia on April Fool’s Day. She replaced Herbert L. Beskin who served as the Trustee for 20 years, retiring in March of this year.
Angela received a B.A. in English from College of the Holy Cross in Worchester, Massachusetts, in1987. She did not immediately go to law school due to starting her family. During this time, she worked as an administrative assistant to a bankruptcy lawyer and found that she really loved the work. “It is an area of law in which we create order out of chaos and provide tangible relief to people. I still find this very satisfying,” Angela stated. She compares bankruptcy work to other areas of law such as divorce or criminal work where attorneys merely mitigate damage. Often in other areas of the law, there is no resolution for years. “With bankruptcy law we vastly improve people’s lives and provide relief very quickly. It is important work.”
In 1998, while raising three children, Angela received her Juris Doctorate from the University of Virginia School of Law.
After graduating from law school, Angela represented debtors in consumer bankruptcy cases, as well as representing a myriad of other clients, further solidifying her dedication to bankruptcy. She also served as the Town Attorney for Gordonsville, Virginia, for 20 years.
In 2005, Angela made the move to work in Chapter 13 Trusteeworld. She served as Staff Attorney to Herb Beskin, Chapter 13 Standing Trustee for the Western District of Virginia, for 18 years. She credits Beskin for being her greatest professional mentor. She feels his training and friendship always set her up for success which has come full circle by her securing the appointment as his successor. Angela considers herself the latest steward of the Trustee position, serving the debtors, attorneys, creditors and the court.
She has spoken on seminar panels in Virginia and nationally and enjoys learning from and interacting with her peers. She is the past Chairman of the Bankruptcy Section of the Virginia State Bar on which she served from 2009 through 2016. Angela has also authored several articles for ConsiderChapter13.org.
Angela is the mother of four grown children and proud “Grams” to seven. She and husband, Gary, are practically newlyweds, having only been married for three years this month! Adding Gary’s offspring brings their total number of children to seven and grandchildren to fifteen . . . so far! They are the joy of Angela and Gary’s lives and most of their free time is devoted to them.
In her rare discretionary time, she loves to read and walk in the woods. She enjoys historical fiction, biographies, and on occasion, she indulges in the guilty pleasure of a trashy novel. AND Angela has created several pieces of stained-glass art. She very much enjoys working with the medium when she can find the time. Something “bankruptcy people” may not know about Angela is that she is a life-long devoted Catholic. She attended Catholic school from kindergarten all the way through undergrad. Angela’s real claim to fame is that she was voted May Queen in both 7th and 12th grades.
