Do You Really Own It?

By Brian D. Lynch, Bankruptcy Judge, Western District of Washington Five years ago, I wrote an article for this publication, “Measuring Success in Chapter 13,”1 where I criticized some media and academics for repeating an outdated and misleading statistic about the success of chapter 13 cases. So it was disconcerting to see John Oliver recently on Comedy Central’s Last Week...

By Jan Hamilton, Chapter 13 Standing Trustee (Topeka, KS) I. The Plan1 A. Notions to Consider before the Plan is Filed… Time for Filing of the Plan. No later than 90 days after the filing of the case, the debtor is required to file a plan, unless the court extends the time if the “need is attributable to circumstances for...

Bankruptcy Courts Grapple with the “COVID-19 Discharge” APPENDIX B Side-by-Side Comparison of 11 U.S.C. § 1328(b)-(i) and 11 U.S.C. § 1141(d)(5)(B)-(C) 11 U.S.C. § 1328(b)-(i) Discharge 11 U.S.C. § 1141(d)(5)(B)-(C) Effect of Confirmation (b) Subject to subsection (d), at any time after the confirmation of the plan and after notice and a hearing, the court may grant a discharge ....

As people prepare to file their taxes, there are things to consider. They will want to determine if they need to file and the best way to do so. For tax year 2018, all individual taxpayers will file using the new Form 1040. Forms 1040A and 1040EZ are no longer available. Taxpayers who previously filed these forms will now file...

By Henry E. Hildebrand, III and Sloan Hastings Section 521(a)(7) requires a chapter 7 debtor to file a statement of intention for “debts secured by the property of the estate.” The debtor must choose to (1) reaffirm the debt, (2) surrender the collateral, or (3) redeem the collateral. Reaffirming the debt contractually binds the debtor to pay the debt even...