Category Archives: The Bankruptcy Code

Big trouble ensues over bankruptcy debtor’s failure to list his watch on his bankruptcy schedules

By doug | Published: October 11, 2011

File this under “what not to do” if you’re filing a consumer bankruptcy case: “Forget” to list your Rolex watch on the bankruptcy schedules. Brian Sullivan, a debtor from Maine, found this out the hard way recently when the First Circuit Court of Appeals denied his discharge. (In other words, he got nothing out of […]

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median income levels for clients thinking about bankruptcy in Massachusetts or New Hampshire

By doug | Published: August 31, 2011

State median income levels are calculated by the Internal Revenue Service, and are used in bankruptcy court to determine eligibility to file a Chapter 7 case. For residents of Massachusetts: The median income for a one person household is $55,602; The median income for a two person household is $67,443; The median income for a […]

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Bankruptcy and divorce: can the bankruptcy court step in and re-do your divorce settlement?

By doug | Published: May 23, 2011

Bankruptcy and divorce — those handmaidens of a whopping mid-life crisis — are serviced by competing court systems with competing and confusing rules and requirements. Here is a guide to (at least partially) untangling the mess. First, since 2005 there has been a notion in the bankruptcy courts of something called a “domestic support order,” […]

Also posted in Chapter 13, Chapter 7 | Comments closed

Confusion reigns on whether a means test is needed when converting a bankruptcy case to Chapter 7

By doug | Published: April 13, 2011

If you file a Chapter 7 bankruptcy case, debtors with mainly consumer debts have to also file a “means test,” which proves they qualify for Chapter 7 relief based on their recent income. If you file Chapter 13 case, there is no pure means test (although there are qualifications), but you file a very similar […]

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The bankruptcy rules: changes in the wind

By doug | Published: February 7, 2011

Debtors file bankruptcy cases. In response, creditors often file claims. A claim is just what you would think it is: a formal statement that the creditor is asserting a debt is owed. Bankruptcy court being a government bureaucracy, claims are made by filling out an official standardized government form. Although claims can always be disputed, […]

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Going to the well one more time for bankruptcy reform

By doug | Published: February 2, 2011

Its that time of year again — time to consider when and how to reform the Bankruptcy Code. Specifically, should the bankruptcy code be amended to allow judges to force creditors to accept “cramdowns” — forced modifications — on first mortgages on a debtor’s house? This idea has been floating around for years now, and […]

Also posted in Chapter 13 | Comments closed

Cars and bankruptcy

By doug | Published: January 24, 2011

The recent Supreme Court decision in the Ransom case got a lot of bankruptcy academics interested again in the subject of how the Bankruptcy Code treats debtors with automobiles and trucks (which is pretty much all of them). It also may have some debtors nervous about how they (and their rides) will be treated if […]

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Supreme Court deals bankruptcy debtors a blow on vehicle expenses

By doug | Published: January 13, 2011

The Supreme Court issued a long awaited bankruptcy ruling on January 12th, but the result wasn’t very consumer friendly. The Court limited the number of deductions that high income debtors can take on the means test, which “tests” them to see if they qualify for Chapter 7. For above-average income debtors, the bankruptcy code allows […]

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Did you have a luxurious Christmas?

By doug | Published: January 4, 2011

Did you have a luxurious Christmas? Before you laugh, you might want to consider the Bankruptcy Code definition of luxury purchases. That would be more than $550 for luxury goods or services incurred within 90 days of filing a bankruptcy case. Alternatively, it can include cash advances aggregating $825 or more within 70 days of […]

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Bankruptcy world turned upside down

By doug | Published: September 19, 2010

Alumni magazines are often a quick read and a throw-away, but I just got one from my dear old alma mater (Northeastern U.) that caught my eye. Professor Daniel Austin wrote a nice article entitled “Consumer Bankruptcy: Staggering Towards Coherency.” You can read the full article here. Professor Austin’s thesis is that the 2005 BAPCPA […]

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