Jumping the gun on year end by a bit, I’ve gathered up the 10 most-read posts on Bankruptcy Soapbox in 2015. Without need of an envelop, please, here they are, in reverse order: 10. Debtor Bites Collector Over Stale Debt Continuing a collection action after learning the debt was beyond the statute of limitations […]
At Risk Of Arrest For Not Paying Your Debts?
This fake arrest warrant is wrong in so many ways. Repeat after me: we don’t jail people for debt. More on scams and scammers We’re from the IRS and we’re here to help Phone tip to avoid arrest
Why These Student Loans Got Discharged In Bankruptcy
Discharging the student loans of a truck driver who lived in his employer’s truck or in a homeless shelter, the bankruptcy court found that repaying $37,000 in student loans from 20 years ago would be an undue hardship. Good call, but why does the decision excite? Student loans do get discharged in bankruptcy, sometimes. This […]
Thankful
Professionally, what’s a bankruptcy lawyer thankful for? I’m thankful for experience and a skill set useful to real people with financial problems. I’m thankful for bankruptcy laws, flawed as they are, that allow people to escape debt and focus on the future. I’m thankful for the right to vote for people who might make the laws […]
Why Would Lawyer Choose Consumer Bankruptcy?
I had my fees cut last week in a small Chapter 13 case. The cut ($500) wasn’t large in absolute terms. But the wound is deep and will continue to bleed into my attitude about what I do as a professional. To borrow a phrase from my kids, I feel profoundly disrespected. The case, filed by […]
Terminate Cell Phone Penalties in Bankruptcy
I’m accustomed to advising those on the verge of filing bankruptcy about big ticket debts like mortgages, student loans, and back taxes. I was surprised when a client, resigned to letting her house go to foreclosure after the bankruptcy, was absolutely delighted to know that she could free herself from her unhappy relationship with Verizon Wireless […]
Lien Stripping Works Without A Bankruptcy Discharge
The waiting and uncertainty is over. The judges have decided. Chapter 13 debtors can void underwater junior liens even if they aren’t eligible for a bankruptcy discharge in the Chapter 13 case. So says the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in a case called Blendheim, decided October 1. And so, a myriad of Chapter 20 debtors […]
Try The Community Property Two Step
Life and debt often presents us with conflicting imperatives. Bankruptcy is required, but when to file? One pressure says: File now! Another issue says: Wait! I saw this vividly this week when the couple walked in with a foreclosure sale in two weeks and $40,000 in taxes that won’t be dischargeable for 18 months. There’s no […]
Fear of Bankruptcy Misplaced
Fear follows debt, like a shadow follows you. People in debt are afraid of the caller on the phone. They are afraid of the process server. They are afraid of the truth getting out. Yet, they fear bankruptcy more, apparently. They seem to fear that life as they know it will end if they file […]
Collections Is A Boogie Man For Businesses Too
“Being sent to collections” is a boogie man for businesses as well as for individuals, I learned this week. I was counseling a small business with lots of vendor debt. We were looking for a strategy that could keep them in business. When I suggested that management sort their payables into vendors they needed and […]
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