The automatic stay that normally applies when a debtor files bankruptcy, does not work the same in a second or even third bankruptcy case. This has caught many debtors unaware and may cause the loss of a home. In a 2nd bankruptcy filing, the automatic stay expires after 30 days. …
All debtors must appear at a meeting called the “341 meeting of creditors”. Creditors may, but usually do not appear, and it is the Trustee asking most of the questions. This 341 must occur for a bankruptcy to be successful and applies in both a Chapter 7 and 13. The…
Property owned by a husband and wife is ordinarily protected in Florida from creditors of only one spouse. There are requirements to being able to use what is called the Tenancy by Entireties Exemption such as the property must have been acquired at the same time etc. One question that…
The word “household” appears in over a dozen sections of the Bankruptcy Code, but it is not defined in the Code. Household income and size are extremely important in bankruptcy and determine whether someone qualifies for a Chapter 7 or the length and amount of a plan payment in a…
In a perfect world, a mortgage creditor should: Timely file accurate proofs of claim for prepetition arrearage; Properly calculate postpetition PITI payment; Apply payments in accordance with confirmed plan; Conduct annual escrow account analysis that reflects payments made under confirmed plan; Send accurate payment change notices, with attachments for RESPA…
One of our most successful cases this month was the discharge of private student loans for our client who attended a Caribbean medical school. The key was that the foreign medical school was not listed on the Federal Schools Codes List as being eligible for federal funding. That particular fact…
It is very important to correctly reflect the assets of your bankruptcy estate and your intentions as well as meet all the other requirements to properly file a bankruptcy. Documents that appear thorough, accurate and complete when filed, tend to receive far less scrutiny. When in doubt, disclose, disclose and…
According to the US Census Bureau, and their latest full year of researched data on child support payments (2007), of the $34 billion dollars in child support that was owed, nearly 62% of it was reported as received by the end of the year. What does that tell us? Well,…
Bankruptcy enables you to write off income taxes more than three-years old. However, bankruptcy cannot get rid of all back taxes. There are many qualifications and stipulations regarding what taxes you can and cannot write off under bankruptcy. Our Florida bankruptcy clients are often able to discharge more taxes than…
The bankruptcy laws do not require married couples to file bankruptcy together. This is one of those things that people do because they just assume they have no choice, and you can bet that one, two, or five knowledgeable people (none of them bankruptcy lawyers) told them they absolutely had…