By Lawrence R. Ahern III, Brown & Ahern (Nashville, TN) Introduction On March 20, 2019, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously in Obduskey v. McCarthy & Holthus LLP1 that actions required by state law in a nonjudicial foreclosure are not regulated by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA).2 The decision resolved a split in the circuits. In addition to the...

(Used with permission,Volume 1, Issue 3:3 6 March, 2022 cdcbaa) Jon: Hi Aki. I can’t believe after knowing you for 30 years now that I don’t know where you were born. Aki: Ha! I was born in Tokyo, Japan although we moved to California when I was about one. We’ve been here ever since. Jon: Why the move? Aki: Well,...

By John P. Gustafson, United States Bankruptcy Judge, Northern District of Ohio, Western Division Click here for Part 1 Click here for Part 2

It is with sadness that we announce the death of retired U.S. Bankruptcy Judge, James J. Barta, Sr. on Tuesday, November 7, 2023. Judge Barta served as a Bankruptcy Referee in the Eastern District of Missouri beginning in 1978, then a Bankruptcy Judge from 1986 through 2006, including three stints as Chief Judge. Before serving with the Court, Judge Barta...

By Henry E. Hildebrand, III, Chapter 13 Standing Trustee for the Middle District of Tennessee (Nashville) It was impermissible and contrary to the provisions of the Bankruptcy Code for the bankruptcy clerk to enter an order which dismissed a Chapter 13 case based only upon the trustee’s certification that the debtor did not make a timely first payment. (Duncan). No...

TFS Bill Pay has launched a new powerful tool to help you succeed; the Attorney Report Center located in your AttorneyPortal. In the current bankruptcy environment, it is absolutely essential that your firm receives all of the compensation for the valuable work it has already done. TFS now provides you with pre-set, real-time reports to confirm your clients’ payments, which...

A secured creditor would not be granted relief from the stay because the motion was based on the creditor’s failure to file a timely proof of claim.  (Grant) In re Flores, 2023 WL 2787514 (Bankr. N.D. Ind. March 8, 2023) Case Summary Mr. Flores filed a petition under Chapter 13 proposing to pay Gaeta Auto Sales in full, with interest,via...

By Phil Lamos, Chief Legal Counsel, Office of the Chapter 13 Trustee Lauren A. Helbling (Cleveland, OH) Bankruptcy Rule 2002(a)(5) directs that 21 days’ notice must be given of the “time fixed to accept or reject a proposed modification of a [Chapter 13] plan.” But to whom must notice be given? Specifically, which creditors need to be given notice? This...

By Henry E. Hildebrand, III, Chapter 13 Standing Trustee (Nashville, TN) Section I. Student Loans, Part I Statutory Suggestions When the Commission asked participants to identify the most important issue in consumer bankruptcy, all three committees were told the same thing: the role of bankruptcy in the field of student loans. All three committees looked at the issue and proposed...