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Do You Know These Exceptions To Discharge Not In The Bankruptcy Code?

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Discharge Dischargeability

exceptions to discharge

Not all exceptions to discharge in bankruptcy are found in the Bankruptcy Code. Inconvenient, but true. The first two non-Code exceptions to discharge that I encountered in practice were HEAL loans, dischargeable only if denying the discharge would be “unconscionable.” (42 U.S.C. sec. 292f(g)); and a scholarship to attend a U.S. Military Academy.  Turns out […]

Filed Under: Discharge Dischargeability Tagged With: discharge exceptions

Sole Proprietorship In Chapter 7 In Trustee’s Cross Hairs

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Business bankruptcy

sole proprietorship locked up

Why would a bankruptcy trustee shut down a sole proprietorship business with no value? That question comes up again and again from newish bankruptcy lawyers who can’t imagine that a trustee would demand the closing of the debtor’s proprietorship business. After all, goes the argument, the debtor needs to make a living and the business […]

Filed Under: Business bankruptcy Tagged With: business, dba

One Trait Makes A Bankruptcy Lawyer Great

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Counseling clients, lawyer skills

standout bankruptcy lawyer

One trait makes a bankruptcy attorney stand out. Bankruptcy forms promote the view that filing a case is just recording what the debtor owns and owes today.  If all you focus on is the here and now, you can assemble a bankruptcy petition. But if there is one, uniform failing in average bankruptcy lawyers, it’s that […]

Filed Under: Counseling clients, lawyer skills

Rescuing A Troubled Chapter 13: The Unseen Threat

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Chapter 13

chapter 13

We all get sucked in, at some time, to trying to rescue a Chapter 13 bankruptcy case gone bad. Dismiss and refile is often an appealing strategy. But, make sure that you don’t let a bad situation get worse. Get your arms around Bankruptcy Code ยง109(g). When only a do-over will do, don’t wait around. […]

Filed Under: Chapter 13

What Bankruptcy Counsel Forgot

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

How do you forget capital gains taxes? More easily than you would think, apparently. When I see the same  blunder twice in two months and the price tag to the client approaches $100,000, it’s time to write about it. It surfaced in two Chapter 11 cases for individuals where I have subbed upon conversion to […]

Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

Delay Division of Community Property At Peril of Bankruptcy

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

Put off the division of community property in a marital dissolution at your peril. Hesitate and you risk all of the community property being swept up in a bankruptcy by the other spouse. And you’ll have little control where community property assets fall. Community property is all in The threat begins with the bankruptcy law […]

Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

700 Words Yield $21K

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Attorneys fees

fee application narrative

Have I got a story for you. A rousing tale of schedules, hearings, frustrations, and ultimately fortunes, traceable to a good story in the fee application. Maybe that’s a bit overblown, but I’m telling this story with a purpose. Good stories lead to fair compensation for bankruptcy attorneys. Fee applications aren’t hard Filing fee applications […]

Filed Under: Attorneys fees

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