Creditors Don’t Receive Estate Assets Recovered After the Last Chapter 13 Plan Payment
Absent a provision in the plan to the contrary, creditors aren’t given estate assets recovered after the final plan payment.
Cursing the Debtor by Itself Isn’t a Violation of the Automatic Stay
A vulgarity directed at the debtor wasn’t a stay violation absent an act designed to collect a debt.
An Unmarried ‘Partner’ Might Not Have a Homestead Exemption, Ninth Circuit Says
A California exemption law protecting victims of spousal abuse doesn’t apply to those who aren’t married.
BAP Lays Down Pleading Rules for Fee Applications in Small Chapter 7 Cases
The fee application by an attorney for a chapter 7 trustee in a small case must state facts to show why the services must have been performed by an attorney, not by the trustee.
A Refinanced Consumer Loan Might Not Be a ‘Consumer Debt,’ Ninth Circuit Says
Refinancing a consumer loan to obtain a lower interest rate might make an individual debtor eligible for chapter 7.
Ninth Circuit: State Law Can’t Require More than What Rule 3001 Requires for Claim Validity
Reversing the BAP, the Ninth Circuit (erroneously) holds that state law cannot demand more documentation for a proof of claim than Bankruptcy Rule 3001 requires for prima facie validity.
‘13’ Debtors May Bifurcate Mortgages that Mature Before the Final Plan Payment
The Ninth Circuit BAP says that a later valuation can make a debtor eligible for chapter 13 when the original schedules meant ineligibility.
A Dischargeability Complaint Filed Without Investigation Resulted in Sanctions
We focus on ethics two days in a row, given the recent disturbing events in Houston.
State Law Lines Up with Federal Judicial Estoppel When Assets Aren’t Scheduled
Oregon Supreme Court allows substitution of a bankruptcy trustee as the real party in interest because denial would chiefly punish the debtor’s creditors.
Bankruptcy Courts Have Statutory Power to Remove Voided Liens
Bankruptcy Rule 7070, incorporating Federal Rule 70 along with 28 U.S.C. § 1655, gives bankruptcy courts power to remove liens of record when the lenders don’t do so voluntarily.