Underwater liens that linger after an earlier bankruptcy don’t count in Chapter 13. At least, they don’t count against the unsecured debt limit that restricts entry into Chapter 13, says the 9th Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel in Free. Great news for homeowners for whom Chapter 13 was not initially available because they exceeded the debt limits. […]
Earthquake In California Law Of Community Property And Title
The ground has shifted under California real property law. The change looms as large as a quake along the San Andreas fault that runs through our neighborhood. The words on a real property deed no longer mean exactly what they say when the property owners are married to each other. The newly decided Brace case holds that the […]
Making Retirement Saving More Expensive
Congress has taken the first step to bar states from sponsoring inexpensive retirement plans for employees. In the name of cutting regulation, H.J. Res. 66 repeals a regulation allowing states to promote retirement savings with plans of their own devising. The regulation doesn’t require anyone to do anything. It allows states to experiment with low […]
Donald Trumpets: I Didn’t File Bankruptcy
As much as it pains me to say, Donald Trump was doubly right about filing bankruptcy. He loudly announced at the debate that he had never filed bankruptcy. And, he’d only taken advantage of our laws in filing. Now, he was contemptuous of his creditors and dismissive about what the filings said about his business judgment. […]
No Discharge Chapter 13 Effective To Strip Lien
The wait is over; the decision is in. Homeowners in the 9th Circuit can strip off underwater mortgages in Chapter 13 cases even when they aren’t entitled to a bankruptcy discharge, the 9th Circuit BAP has held. Thus, courts have taken another step in the building consensus that the debtor doesn’t have to be eligible […]
Homeowner Beats Loan Servicer On Foreclosure Appeal
California appeals court slaps down servicer’s attempt to require payment of the entire mortgage loan a condition of homeowner protection. Nice try, Ocwen. But no, says an intermediate California appeals court. Such an interpretation would gut the California Homeowner’s Bill of Rights. Facing foreclosure The facts in Valbuena v. Ocwen are common: Ocwen became the servicer […]
My 7 Favorite Soapbox Posts Of 2014
I tallied the readership’s favorite posts of the year and found the list far different than mine. So here’s the counter-list of my favorite posts of 2014, drawn from material first published this year. Most impactful appellate decision Welsh was decided in 2013, but I talked about it on Soapbox in 2014: The Most Important […]
Best Of 2014 On Bankruptcy Soapbox
Here are the ten posts that most intrigued readers of Bankruptcy Soapbox in 2014. Some are new this year, and others are classics from earlier. In reverse order, the ten posts that spoke to you. 10. Six Rotten Reasons Not To File Bankruptcy Mortgage law attorney Bill Purdy walks through the misguided reasons his clients […]
Congratulations To Sergio Garcia, New California Lawyer
Welcome to the California Bar, Sergio Garcia. Brought to this country as a teen by his father, Garcia is still waiting after 10 years for his green card. Meanwhile, he graduated from university and law school, and passed California’s notoriously difficult bar exam. But it was unclear whether an undocumented person was eligible for […]
