Hands up everyone who has encountered a claim that a debt is non-dischargeable by reason of § 523(a)(14). That’s what I thought: nada, or next thing to it. Despite watching for it, I hadn’t seen one ‘til this year when AmEx filed an adversary in a case in which I was peripherally involved. My copy of Collier’s code doesn’t comment...

By James J. Robinson, Chief United States Bankruptcy Judge, Northern District of Alabama Can the trustee challenge the debtor’s attorney’s fee? In re Rodriguez Perez, 2018 WL 3655656 (Bankr. D.P.R. 2018). In this case, the chapter 13 trustee asked the bankruptcy court to assess the contract between the debtor and counsel under § 526-528. The trustee alleged that the contract...

By William Sawyer, Chief U.S. Bankruptcy Judge for the Middle District of Alabama (Montgomery) (Used with permission. Court News and Views, Volume 18, October 2020) Lawyers who practice regularly in bankruptcy court invariably make many appearances at motion dockets. This article provides practice pointers to lawyers who do not practice often in this Court to familiarize them with our procedures...

By The Honorable William Houston Brown (Retired) No attorney fees for Chapter 7 work in converted case. In a case that began as Chapter 7 and converted to Chapter 13, the debtor’s attorney sought fees for work in the Chapter 7 phase under § 330(a)(4)(B) rather than § 330(a)(1). The Court found the better interpretation of § 330(a)(4)(B)’s language “in...

By The Honorable William Houston Brown (Retired) Disputed claim included in calculation of eligibility. The debtor’s case was dismissed for exceeding § 109(e)’s unsecured debt limit, when the debtor had signed $1,092,000 mortgage note but the mortgage was never recorded. The lender filed an unsecured claim for $1.7 million, and the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel agreed with the bankruptcy court that...

By Nicholas Miller, Third-Year Student, University of Texas School of Law, and Madison Haueisen, Second-Year Student, University of Texas School of Law The second issue at hand in this year’s Duberstein moot court problem involves a matter of statutory interpretation—specifically, whether §503(b) of the Bankruptcy Code allows a creditor to recover costs and expenses incurred in making a substantial contribution...

By Cathy Moran, Esq. (Redwood City, CA) Once again, I sat in a 341 meeting where the trustee’s representative purported to deliver vital information to the assembled debtors. She had a captive audience of anxious listeners. She had ostensible power of life and death over their financial future. They needed to know what she had to say. But as communication,...

Retirement of the Honorable Guy R. Humphrey

Insurance proceeds generated due to a totaled car treated under the “hanging paragraph” of 1325(a) covers the entire claim; interest, however, is not recalculated even though it was a higher rate than the interest paid under the plan. (Hanan) In re Pagan, 638 B.R. 887 (Bankr. E.D. Wis. Jan. 24, 2022) Case Summary Bankruptcy judges have been overheard saying that...

Judge Gustafson and Daniel Tavera explore “Who Benefits” from work done in a Chapter 13 case, and they suggest that the title of this piece comes from an old-time radio show – “Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar” – one of the most popular radio shows in its day. It was a five-part show called “The Cui Bono Matter.” To hear a...