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Category Archives: Chapter 13 Bankruptcy

Discharging Student Loans In a Bankruptcy Case

Published on December 21, 2009 by Kathleen Munden

Student loans can only be discharged in a bankruptcy case by obtaining a favorable ruling in an adversary proceeding, which is essentially a mini-lawsuit filed within the bankruptcy case. Courts use the factors set out in Brunner v. NY State Higher Educ. Serv. Corp., 831 F.2d 295 (2nd Cir. 1987) to decide if a discharge [...]

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What Happens To My Car In a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy?

Published on October 20, 2009 by Kathleen Munden

When you file a Chapter 13 bankruptcy case, you must propose a plan to repay your creditors. Usually, your unsecured creditors (such as credit cards, personal loans, medical bills, and other debts for which no collateral is pledged) will be discharged without any payment. However, if you want to keep your secured assets, such [...]

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Credit Counseling Requirement Before Filing Bankruptcy

Published on August 24, 2009 by Kathleen Munden

One of the changes made to the Bankruptcy Code in 2005 was the addition of a requirement to take a credit counseling course before filing a bankruptcy case. The theory behind this requirement was that if people just knew how to prepare a budget and live within their means, fewer people would have to file [...]

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How Can I Rebuild My Credit After Bankruptcy?

Published on August 19, 2009 by Kathleen Munden

Having a bankruptcy filing on your credit report is obviously not a positive event. The bankruptcy notation stays on your credit report for 10 years, and does have the effect of lowering your credit score. However, there are steps you can take to minimize the negative effect of the bankruptcy notation, and rebuild your credit [...]

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How Can a Chapter 13 Case Help Me With Delinquent Child Support?

Published on August 14, 2009 by Kathleen Munden

If you are delinquent in your child support payments, you may be facing wage garnishment, the seizure of your income tax refunds, and possibly even jail time. By filing a Chapter 13  bankruptcy case, you will be able to stop those actions, so long as you are able to pay back all of the delinquent [...]

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How Can a Chapter 13 Case Help Me Stop a Foreclosure?

Published on August 11, 2009 by Kathleen Munden

When a homeowner is faced with foreclosure, there are few feasible options available to stop the sale. Unless the homeowner can bring the delinquent payments current immediately or refinance the home, the best option for stopping the sale may be the filing of a Chapter 13 bankruptcy case.
As long as the case is filed [...]

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What Is a Motion to Lift Stay?

Published on August 10, 2009 by Kathleen Munden

The “automatic stay” that goes into effect when a bankruptcy case is filed prohibits creditors from taking action to collect debts from the bankruptcy debtor. However, in some situations, creditors can file a motion to lift the stay, allowing them to proceed with collection efforts just as they would have if the bankruptcy case had [...]

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Bankruptcy Filings Reach 2005 Levels

Published on August 5, 2009 by Kathleen Munden

According to the American Bankruptcy Institute, consumer bankruptcy filings reached 126,434 in July 2009, the highest monthly total since the rush of filings that occurred before the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act was implemented in October 2005. The data came from the National Bankruptcy Research Center (NBKRC). The July 2009 consumer filing total [...]

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What Is the “Automatic Stay” In Bankruptcy?

Published on August 4, 2009 by Kathleen Munden

The fiing of a bankruptcy petition acts as an immediate stay of any act against the debtor to collect a debt. It is called an “automatic stay” because no action, other than the filing of the petition, is necessary in order for the stay to go into effect. Although there are many exceptions to the [...]

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FHA Loans More Accessible Than Most People Realize

Published on July 12, 2009 by Kathleen Munden

Although lending standards have become more strict during the economic crisis, the FHA loan program has remained relatively unchanged, and continues to be the most popular mortgage program in America.
Many people falsely believe that FHA loans are available only for first-time buyers or those with perfect credit. Both of those misconceptions are untrue. FHA loans [...]

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Should You File For Bankruptcy?

Published on July 6, 2009 by Kathleen Munden

Making the decision to file a bankruptcy case is very difficult and confusing for most people. To make matters worse, there is so much misinformation about bankruptcy, both in the press and among the public, that most people have no idea where to find real answers to their bankruptcy questions.
Recently, I was watching the “Today” [...]

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Local Bankruptcy Attorneys Agree That Medical Bills Play a Role In a Majority of Bankruptcies

Published on June 30, 2009 by Kathleen Munden

In the wake of a Harvard study published in the American Journal of Medicine, which found that medical bills were a factor in 62% of bankruptcies nationwide, the Dallas Morning News interviewed local attorneys and consumer advocates concerning those findings.
Carolyn Chesnutt, a bankruptcy lawyer with Addison-based Charles R. Chesnutt, P.C., stated, “Often the most responsible, [...]

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Harvard Study Finds Illness and Medical Bills Are Linked To Nearly Two-Thirds of Bankruptcies

Published on June 29, 2009 by Kathleen Munden

According to research conducted jointly by Harvard Law School, Harvard Medical School, and Ohio University, medical bills were a factor in 62.1% of all bankruptcies filed in 2007. The data for the study was collected prior to the current economic downtown, and likely understates the current impact of illness on bankruptcy filings.
The study, which is [...]

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Dallas Ranks Eighth In Vehicle Dumping and Insurance Scams

Published on June 25, 2009 by Kathleen Munden

According to the National Insurance Crime Bureau, Texas is second in the nation for potential “owner give-up” cases, with 353 between January 2004 and March 2009. “Owner give-up” is the insurance fraud scam where drivers abandon or destroy their cars, then report them stolen to collect insurance money.
During the first quarter of 2009, owner give-ups [...]

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