Consumer Corner

Post-Confirmation Jurisdiction in Chapter 13: Is Vesting an Issue? By Robert G. Drummond The filing of a chapter 13 petition creates a bankruptcy estate consisting of the legal and equitable interests of the debtor. 1 Property of the chapter 13 estate also includes

The Transient Debtor and the Debtor’s Homestead Exemption By Laura E. Richardson The U.S. is experiencing a more-than-decade-long trend in migration whereby its population is increasingly relocating between states, even as the overall mover rate is in decline. 1 Per the

Property Disclosure Duties in Chapter 13 By Sumner A. Bourne The consumer bankruptcy system, where the economic resources for investigating debtors’ financial affairs are especially limited, relies on accurate and predictably timed debtor-filed schedules to function

The Exchange: Turning Over Tax Refunds After ACP Expiration to Obtain a Longer Plan Term By Michael T. Brown The Bankruptcy Code 1 limits a chapter 13 debtor with “below-median income” 2 to a repayment term of three years 3 “unless the court, for cause, approves a

Assessing In re Topp’s Impact on Interest Rates for Secured Creditors By Michael Miller The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit decided Farm Credit Servs. of Am. FLCA v. Topp (In re Topp) on Aug. 3, 2023. 1 The central issue was this: Does the U.S. Supreme

When a Nonfiling Spouse’s Support of an Adult Child Prevents Relief By Alban Beqiri Imagine a debtor going through chapter 7, hoping for a fresh start, only to get kicked out — not for hiding money or playing games, but because the debtor’s spouse is supporting their

Think First and File Later: Pitfalls in Claims Litigation By Amelia Martin Adams Almost everything filed in bankruptcy cases bears a signature or affirmation. Documents signed in ink or digitally with an /s/ certify the signatory’s approval of their content. Documents

After Bartenwerfer, What Is an “Honest Debtor”? By Kaila D. Spivey The Bankruptcy Code provides a fresh start to the honest-but-unfortunate debtor. 1 An “honest debtor” is one who accurately discloses necessary information and abides by the Code. 2 However, after the U

Consumer Bankruptcy and Capitalist Exploitation By Dr. Michael D. Sousa Editor’s Note: This is an opinion piece and only reflects the viewpoints of the author. In Capital Volume I , German philosopher and economist Karl Marx unpacked the dynamics of capitalism by

Complications of Interstate Exemption Law and Marriage By Edward Boltz and Lori Patton The consumer bankruptcy exemption scheme has always been complicated. Even when the whole nation operated under 11 U.S.C. § 522, each state had the option to decline the use of