Given the way they behave, you’d think mortgage servicers actually flew a pirate flag over their operations. They cash your check for the mortgage payment, then who knows what they do with it and what they credit it to. Outside of bankruptcy, screw ups in handling your payments are a breach of the contract […]
Chapter 13 Discharges HOA Debt
Condo fees that come due after a Chapter 13 bankruptcy is filed are discharged at the conclusion of the case. In a victory for condo owners, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the more expansive Chapter 13 discharge trumped a bankruptcy statute sticking condo owners with the fees. Or really, this is a […]
$7000 Off The Price Of The Car In Chapter 13
How would you like to reduce your car payment, by lots? In a recent case, Chapter 13 allowed my client to save $7000 off the loan balance based on an examination of the car finance contract. You couldn’t see the issue from the monthly statement. When I got the finance agreement itself, I found the […]
Chapter 13: Know Who Gets Paid First Under Your Plan
Who gets paid in Chapter 13, and in what order, makes a huge different when charting your course. Sometimes, we must realize that reality exists outside of television shows. And when real-world reality hits some debtors, it’s a trainwreck. It comes up for me when Chapter 13 clients and I sit down to write the […]
How Chapter 13 Cuts Car Loan Down To Size
Car lenders who make new car loans with an underwater trade-in will face the music in Chapter 13. The Supreme Court declined to review a 9th Circuit decision that stripped car loans of their protected specially protected status in bankruptcy; as a result, Californians will continue to benefit from the debtor-friendly decision in Penrod, rising out of […]
How Chapter 13 Saves You Money
Why should I file Chapter 13 if I have to pay all my creditors in full? Because, I said, even a 100% repayment plan under Chapter 13 saves you money. This client had a fistful of equity in a home; that equity made a Chapter 13 the required choice of chapter for the man. But […]
Chapter 13 To The Rescue In Ruinous Business Lawsuit
Twice in the last six months, Chapter 13 bankruptcy has saved clients facing catastrophic lawsuits arising out of business. And because the targets of these lawsuits filed bankruptcy before they’d spent a fortune on lawyers and before the court had a chance to award huge damages, they fit beneath the Chapter 13 debt limits. We […]
Who Gets A Slice Of The Bankruptcy Pie?
“That woman filed a claim in our bankruptcy case, and we don’t owe her any money!” The next line, or paragraph really, of my client’s email asked what was I, her bankruptcy lawyer, going to do about it. The short answer was nothing. Nada. Not a thing. I didn’t plan to do anything. Because when […]
Why I Love Chapter 13
How do I love thee, Chapter 13? Let me count the ways. Hang on, because it’s a long list. Thirteen reasons Chapter 13 rocks. I love Chapter 13 because: 1. Debtors keep control of their assets. They run their businesses. There is no trustee tasked to sell their assets. 2. Repayment to creditors […]
Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Disrupted by Coronavirus
Has your Chapter 13 bankruptcy case been turned upside down by coronavirus? You are not alone. And attorneys, trustees and judges are all working on adaptations and adjustments that will save pending cases. Practices and procedures in Chapter 13 vary widely around the country. What follows is what I see here in the Bay Area […]
