The National Consumer Law Center once again takes on a gargantuan task at the Bankruptcy Mortgage Project website. The site gathers documents, rules, procedures and forms touching mortgage issues in bankruptcy cases, organized by state. Within the site, it addresses Loss Mitigation Chapter 13 Plan Cure Requirements Stay Relief Lien Stripping Chapter 13 Plans […]
Go Back, Says Mortgage Law Expert
Pamela Simmons is one of the towering figures in the field of mortgage law, Truth in Lending and the mortgage meltdown. She and her partner Bill Purdy are my go-to lawyers for anything related to mortgage loans gone bad. I count her a friend as well. Below is an open letter she wrote to […]
You Can’t Tell The Players Without A Scorecard
The business bankruptcy version of “who’s on first” is the inquiry: who is liable for this debt? Get a clear answer or get ready for trouble. A small business owner and his business are often indivisible in his mind. When a bankruptcy lawyer doesn’t work to pull them apart, analytically, he should be […]
Humpty Dumpty and Statutory Interpretation
After all the time I spend cajoling, suggesting, demanding that bankruptcy lawyer READ THE CODE, I was bitten by my own advice recently. The youngish bankruptcy lawyer had read § 109, and leapt to a conclusion 180 degrees from correct. He was utterly right that the words of the statute talk about debts the debtor […]
Chapter 13 Trustee Makes A Christmas List
OK, so I’m behind. Christmas was three weeks ago. I’m just getting around to sharing with you my Chapter 13 trustee’s Wish List for 2012, which she announced at our bankruptcy bar’s Christmas party. The fact that she has to “ask” us to do what the Code says we must speaks volumes about the attention […]
Do You Know Bankruptcy’s Three Little Words?
They’re not “I love you” or even “I am sorry”. They’re bequest, devise, and inheritance from §541(a)(5)(A). Any interest in property that would have been property of the estate if such interest had been an interest of the debtor on the date of the filing of the petition, and that the debtor acquires or […]
New Year’s Resolutions: What Challenges Me
I asked you last week to identify the challenges in your practice. I heard cries for more clients, for mentors, for new skill sets. Turning the focus around, I thought about what I wanted to do differently or better this year in my practice. Here’s my list. Communicate the bankruptcy grounds rules to clients more […]
