Bankruptcy: A Disruption in the Force

By Cathleen Cooper Moran, Moran Law Group, Mountain View, CA

The intersection of Bankruptcy and Family Law can be liberating or disruptive, depending on the timing of a bankruptcy filing and the goals of your client. There are an almost infinite number of combinations of timing and facts when these two areas of law collide, each combination leading to different outcomes.

The variables start with whether bankruptcy occurs before or after status is altered; before or after the division of the property; the choice of . . .

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Tax Projections and the Means Test – Part II

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By Cathy Moran, Esq. (Redwood City, CA) I wrote earlier about calculating the projected income tax deduction on the means test when the year of filing situation looks much like last year. But what if things aren't the same year over year? Your job as a bankruptcy attorney becomes more complicated. It's suddenly more than figuring the tax refund or...

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If all the children in Lake Woebegon are above average, all the small businesses our clients run are quite valuable.If the Chapter 13 trustee is asking the question, anyway. I rail when the Chapter 13 trustee’s business questionnaire asks, “how much would you sell your business for.” Phrased that way, the question implicates all kinds of facts that aren’t in...

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CARES Act Financial Hardship ‘Laundry List’

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The Academy

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Taxpayers with Expiring ITINs Should Renew Them Now

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From the Editor

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By The Honorable William Houston Brown (Retired) Three-month delay in completing bare-bones petition. When the Chapter 13 debtor filed a skeletal petition, her motion for more time to complete schedules, statement and plan was denied, with no cause found for extending time after three-month delay, and show cause hearing was set to determine if case should be dismissed with 180-day...

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Reasonable Fees and/or Questionable Attorney

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By Marsha M. Brown, Staff Attorney to Chapter 13 Trustee Douglas W. Neway (Jacksonville, FL) We talk about it daily - emailing issues back and forth as to what is reasonable and what is not. Should every Court have a basic reasonable fee structure or should every attorney be required to file an application to prove the reasonableness of his/her...

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Chapter 13 Trustee Duties, Powers, And Limitations – Part 2

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By James J. Robinson, Chief United States Bankruptcy Judge, Northern District of Alabama What are the statutory duties of the standing chapter 13 trustee? Bankruptcy Code §§ 1302 and 704 provide the statutory framework for the trustee’s duties, and provide as follows: 11 U.S.C. § 1302. Trustee (a) If the United States trustee appoints an individual under section 586(b) of...

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