The tax filing deadline approaches. So why is a bankruptcy lawyer talking about taxes? I’ve found over three decades as a bankruptcy lawyer that there’s a surprising degree of overlap between bankruptcy and tax . All too often, it’s tax troubles that brings a family to me for help. Here’s my two cents on what […]
Do It Yourself Bankruptcy Software Is A Trap
Good intentions and a good education are apparently not enough for Upsolve to get the means test right. Upsolve describes itself as a non-profit, created by Harvard Law School graduates, whose mission is to “help low-income Americans in financial distress get a fresh start through Chapter 7 bankruptcy at no cost.” Admirable, so far. Until […]
How Consumer Remedies Were Gutted By Little- Noticed Tax Code Changes
Tax code changes effective in 2018 inflicted a crippling blow to consumers who must sue to enforce their rights. And few have yet noticed. The tax deduction for miscellaneous itemized deductions under IRC Section 212 is gone. So now, consumers who prevail under statutes that award attorneys fees to the successful plaintiff are denied a […]
The Tax Deduction No One Tells You About
Did you file Chapter 13 to save your house from foreclosure? Making payments to the trustee to catch up on the mortgage? If you haven’t claimed a tax deduction for the bankruptcy plan payments that go to the lender, you’re leaving money on the table. That’s money that fattens Uncle Sam’s coffers at the expense […]
Chapter 13 Dismissed After All Payments Are Made: Self Inflicted Wounds
There’s been a rash of bullet-ridden feet lately in Chapter 13 cases. Debtors seem to whip out their pistols and shoot themselves in the foot with increasing regularity. Just when their goal of keeping the house was within reach, had they paid attention, they lose it all. It happens when debtors don’t hold up their […]
Collection Law Suits in California
A prospective bankruptcy client often arrives in my office they’ve been sued for debt and they are panicked about the consequences. Almost invariably, the client has leapt to two incorrect assumptions: the world as they know it is coming to an end; and they don’t have to do anything until the date set for the case […]
Collection Suits and Court Dates
Those in financial difficulty are frequently not operating at their peak. I know that. But for the life of me, I can’t understand how the recipient of a summons and complaint from a California court can read the papers and absorb only that they have a “court date”. Arghhh! How California lawsuit works The basic […]
Why Even Rock Solid Marriages Need A Prenuptial Agreement
Pre nuptial agreements aren’t just for the rich or mid-life marriages. In California, pre nuptial agreements do far more than provide a blueprint for division of property at divorce. A prenup can earn its keep for decades in marriages where divorce never enters the picture. Why? It protects the assets of the marriage from outsiders. […]
When $400 Emergency Pushes You Over The Edge
The Federal Reserve reported that 40% of Americans couldn’t meet a $400 emergency expense without borrowing. A significant slice of them couldn’t pay it at all. So, a Bloomberg economist devoted his column to deconstructing how the press and political figures, in his opinion, misused that finding. My God. The guy was too caught up in […]
Debt Buyers Barred From California Courts
Zombie debt may have met its match. California law now bars the door to the courthouse to a debt buyer holding a claim that is beyond the statute of limitations. Civil Code § 1788.56. If the party holding the debt bought it from someone else, after the original creditor had charged the debt off of […]
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