Joining the Tenth Circuit, the Ninth Circuit also has held that chapter 13 trustees are not paid their fees when cases are dismissed before confirmation. The identical issue was argued on February 15 before the Second Circuit.
In short order, we’ll have either unanimity or a split of circuits. A split will give rise to an issue worthy of a grant of certiorari by the Supreme Court.
Notably, the Ninth Circuit’s opinion on June 12 adopted reasoning in an amicus brief filed in support of the debtor by the National Consumer Bankruptcy Rights Center and National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys.
When a chapter 13 debtor has excess disposable income not being paid to creditors every month, some courts in Texas have been imposing a so-called Molina provision on the plan that bars the debtor.....
Holding that “the reasonable reliance requirement is a low hurdle for creditors to satisfy,” the Fifth Circuit decided that the bankruptcy court’s findings of fact were clearly erroneous, and directed.....
Writing about the so-called individual mandate under the Affordable Care Act (a.k.a. ACA or Obamacare) seems like beating a dead horse now that Congress has repealed the penalty for taxpayers who didn.....
In chapter 13, creditors – not just the debtor – may sometimes lose out if the debtor had concealed the existence of a personal injury claim and the defendant invokes judicial estoppel to bar.....
A relatively puny case from south Texas involving a false notice under Bankruptcy Rule 3002.1 is making important law on the rule and the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, or FDCPA, 15 U.S.C.....
Fifth Circuit Stretches Equitable Notions to Bend Plain Language
A nonprecedential opinion from the Fifth Circuit raises the perennial question: When, if ever, may the court ignore the plain language.....
Yesterday, the Supreme Court granted certiorari in City of Chicago v. Fulton, 19-357 (Sup. Ct.), to resolve a circuit split and decide whether inaction can violate the automatic stay under Section 362.....
Creating a split of circuits, the Fifth Circuit held that Section 362(c)(3)(A) only terminates the automatic stay as to the debtor and property of the debtor, but not as to property of the estate.
Sec.....
Although chapter 13 may not always accommodate the need to care for an indigent member of a debtor’s extended family, chapter 13 will permit a debtor to continue paying premiums on a whole life.....
On an issue where the courts are divided, Bankruptcy Judge Kevin R. Huennekens of Richmond, Va., ruled that a joint tenant may strip an underwater lien from property even though the co-owner is not in.....