Few provisions in the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 (BAPCPA) have generated as much interest and inquiry as the new requirements that debtors obtain pre-filing budget and credit counseling and complete a po…

Congress moved quickly to enact legislation authorizing federal courts, including bankruptcy courts, to hold court sessions outside their usual places of business. The law is called the Federal Judiciary Emergency Special Sessions Act of 20…

The "good faith" of a chapter 13 debtor will now be subject to examination at two different instances in the confirmation process. 11 U.S.C. §1325 (a)(3) requires that the court find that "the plan has been proposed in good faith and not by…

This month's Update continues the series of articles examining BAPCPA in detail. Courts have long struggled with the issue of whether the Code permits a "ride-through" for a chapter 7 debtor's secured personal property. In fact, this questi…

When can debtors avoid judicial liens impairing their bankruptcy exemptions in a homestead? Does state law have an effect? Does it make a difference when the debtor acquired an interest in the property? These and other questions were thorou…

The road through the briar patch of financial troubles has, in many jurisdictions, always passed by a homestead. Prudent debtors have normally taken advantage of the ability to shelter both their estates and their families in the homestead.…

One of the most frequently asked questions by persons ensnared in a bankruptcy for the first time is the bankruptcy's effect on a creditor's right to pursue a claim against the debtor. Often overlooked by debtors and creditors alike, 11 U.S…

The Fourth Circuit was right on target last year when it held that C1322(c)(2) does not permit the bifurcation of an undersecured claim into separate secured and unsecured claims, as several bankruptcy courts had held. Witt v. United Compan…

First and foremost, bankruptcy is about people—people who have problems. They look to their lawyers and to the court for a solution to those problems. More than 95 percent of all bankruptcy cases involve consumers, not businesses or corpora…

It is not unusual for consumer debtors to have borrowed from a qualified retirement or savings plan pre-petition to meet cash needs. Typically the debtor schedules the plan as a creditor with a claim in the amount of the outstanding balance…