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Archives for December 2008

What Bankruptcy Can Not Do

Posted on December 31, 2008 Written by

Bankruptcy can not, however, cure every financial problem.  Nor is it the right step for every individual.  In bankruptcy, it is usually not possible to:

  • Eliminate certain rights of “secured” creditors.  A creditor is “secured” if it has taken a mortgage or other lien on property as collateral for a loan.  Common examples are car loans and home mortgages.  You can force secured creditors to take payments over time in the bankruptcy process and bankruptcy can eliminate your obligation to pay any additional money on the debt if you decide to give back the property.  But you generally can not keep secured property unless you continue to pay the debt.
  • Discharge types of debts singled out by the bankruptcy law for special treatment, such as child support, alimony, most student loans, court restitution orders, criminal fines, and most taxes. [Read more…]
Filed Under: Discharge, Filing Bankruptcy, Mortgages, Vehicles

What Can Bankruptcy Do for Me?

Posted on December 30, 2008 Written by

Bankruptcy may make it possible for you to:

  • Eliminate the legal obligation to pay most or all of your debts.  This is called a “discharge” of debts.  It is designed to give you a fresh financial start.
  • Stop foreclosure on your house or mobile home and allow you an opportunity to catch up on missed payments.  (Bankruptcy does not, however, automatically eliminate mortgages and other liens on your property without payment.)
  • Prevent repossession of a car or other property, or force the creditor to return property even after it has been repossessed. [Read more…]
Filed Under: Exemptions & What You Get to Keep, Filing Bankruptcy, Mortgages, Vehicles

What Is Bankruptcy?

Posted on December 30, 2008 Written by

Bankruptcy is a legal proceeding in which a person who can not pay his or her bills can get a fresh financial start.  The right to file for bankruptcy is provided by federal law, and all bankruptcy cases are handled in federal court.  Filing bankruptcy immediately stops all of your creditors from seeking to collect debts from you, at least until your debts are sorted out according to the law.

Source:  Answers to Common Bankruptcy Questions Pamphlet
National Consumer Law Center, Boston, MA www.nclc.org

Remember:  The law often changes.  Each case is different.  This pamphlet is meant to give you general information and not to give you specific legal advice.

Filed Under: Filing Bankruptcy

How Do I Find a Bankruptcy Attorney?

Posted on December 29, 2008 Written by

As with any area of the law, it is important to carefully select an attorney who will respond to your personal situation.  The attorney should not be too busy to meet you individually and to answer questions as necessary.

The best way to find a trustworthy bankruptcy attorney is to seek recommendations from family, friends or other members of the community, especially any attorney you know and respect.

You should carefully read retainers and other documents the attorney asks you to sign.  You should not hire an attorney unless he or she agrees to represent you throughout the case.

In bankruptcy, as in all areas of life, remember that the person advertising the cheapest rate is not necessarily the best.  [Read more…]

Filed Under: Exemptions & What You Get to Keep, Filing Bankruptcy

Can I File Bankruptcy Without an Attorney?

Posted on December 29, 2008 Written by

Although it may be possible for some people to file a bankruptcy case without an attorney, it is not a step to be taken lightly.  The process is difficult and you may lose property or other rights if you do not know the law.  It takes patience and careful preparation.  Chapter 7 (straight bankruptcy) cases are somewhat easier.  Very few people have been able to successfully file chapter 13 (reorganization) cases on their own.

Source: Answers to Common Bankruptcy Questions Pamphlet
National Consumer Law Center, Boston, MA
www.nclc.org

Here is what the Kansas Bankruptcy Court says about filing bankruptcy without an attorney:

It is very important that a bankruptcy case be filed and handled correctly. The rules are very technical, and a misstep may affect a debtor’s rights. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Filing Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy Help Still Available

Posted on December 29, 2008 Written by

A decision to file for bankruptcy should be made only after determining that bankruptcy is the best way to deal with your financial problems.  This brochure can not explain every aspect of the bankruptcy process.  If you still have questions after reading it, you should speak with an attorney familiar with bankruptcy.

There have been many news reports suggesting that changes to the bankruptcy law passed by Congress in 2005 prevent many individuals from filing bankruptcy.  It is true that these changes have made the process more complicated.  But the basic right to file bankruptcy and most of the benefits of bankruptcy remain the same for most individuals.

Source:  Answers to Common Bankruptcy Questions Pamphlet
National Consumer Law Center, Boston, MA
www.nclc.org

Remember:  The law often changes.  Each case is different.  This pamphlet is meant to give you general information and not to give you specific legal advice.

Filed Under: Filing Bankruptcy

Check Out Bankruptcy Law Network and Sister Sites on Mortgages, Debt and Credit

Posted on December 27, 2008 Written by

I invite you to read about consumer bankruptcy law at Bankruptcy Law Network. It has been my pleasure to join 24 bankruptcy lawyers and consumer advocates from around the country in writing blog posts for BLN, which has become, in less than two years, the premier Internet site for consumer bankruptcy law information.

The American Bar Association Journal has nominated BLN as a Top 100 Blawg in the niche category.  BLN regularly tops the list of most popular bankruptcy blogs compiled by the ABA Journal.

We also collaborate on the sister blog sites:  Mortgage Law Network, Credit Law Network and Debt Law Network.

Filed Under: Filing Bankruptcy, Kansas Bankruptcy News

Pets Abandoned in Hard Times

Posted on December 27, 2008 Written by

People struggling financially are making tough choices and are being forced to give up their pets.  Almost daily people are bringing dogs and cats they can no longer care for to the Topeka animal shelter.

Recently a man brought in two skinny dogs, saying he couldn’t afford to feed them. “He had to feed his kids first,” an intake worker at the Helping Hands Human Society told the Topeka Capital-Journal.

The shelter is filling up with dogs and cats [Read more…]

Filed Under: Foreclosure, Kansas Bankruptcy News

Conversion Moots Negative Equity Case

Posted on December 21, 2008 Written by

Court watchers will have to wait for another case to find out how the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit will rule on the so-called negative equity issue.   The Court dismissed the appeal in In re: Hunt, No. 07-3297, as moot after the debtor converted his case from chapter 13 to chapter 7 bankruptcy.

The ruling disappointed the creditor, Wells Fargo Bank, N.A, which urged the Court to proceed with the appeal despite the conversion.  The Court ruled against the creditor saying the existence of other cases on the same legal issue and the desire for binding appellate authority was not sufficient reason to make an exception to the mootness doctrine. Courts are required dismiss a case when a controversy no longer exists. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Chapter 13, Conversion, Foreclosure, Kansas Bankruptcy News, Means Test, Vehicles

Mortgage Creditor Denied Bankruptcy Attorneys Fees

Posted on December 21, 2008 Written by

A mortgage creditor may not include attorneys fees in its chapter 13 bankruptcy proof of claim unless the loan documents expressly allow creditor attorneys fees for bankruptcy proceedings, Judge Janice Miller Karlin ruled this week.

U.S. Bank Home Mortgage relied on the “do and pay whatever is necessary to protect the value of the Property and Lender’s rights in the Property,” language, typical of promissory notes and mortgages, to add $350 in attorneys fees to its proof of claim in the debtor’s chapter 13 bankruptcy proceeding.

If [Debtors] fails to make these payments or the payments required by paragraph 2, or fails to perform any other covenants and agreements contained in this Security Instrument, or there is a legal proceeding that may significantly affect [U.S. Bank’s] rights in the Property (such as a proceeding in bankruptcy,for condemnation or to enforce laws or regulations), then [U.S. Bank] may do and pay whatever is necessary to protect the value of the Property and Lender’s rights in the Property, including payment of taxes, hazard insurance and other items mentioned in paragraph 2. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Chapter 13, Kansas Bankruptcy News, Mortgages

NCLC Collects Mortgage Modification Information

Posted on December 20, 2008 Written by

National Consumer Law Center (NCLC), America’s consumer law experts, has collected information about the mortgage industry and government sponsored loan modification programs for combating foreclosure.

Loan Modification Programs Chart

Filed Under: Foreclosure, Mortgages

One Million Bankruptcies and Climbing

Posted on December 16, 2008 Written by

Bankruptcy filings topped the one million mark for the first time since most of the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act  BAPCPA) went into effect October 17, 2005.  That is a whopping 30% increase across the nation!  Kansas filings increased almost 12% during the same time period.

The Administrative Office for the U.S. Courts statistics show 1,042,993 bankruptcy cases were filed for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2008. Kansas cases totaled 8,642. About 3% of the Kansas filings had predominantly business debts. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Kansas Bankruptcy News

Free Web Videos on Filing Bankruptcy

Posted on December 14, 2008 Written by

Free web videos on about filing for bankruptcy are now available on the federal court website:

  1. Introduction
  2. Types of Bankruptcy
  3. Limits of Bankruptcy
  4. Filing for Bankruptcy
  5. Meeting of Creditors
  6. Bankruptcy Crimes
  7. Court Hearings
  8. The Discharge
  9. Legal Assistance
Filed Under: Bad Outcomes, Fraud, Crimes, Discharge, Filing Bankruptcy Tagged: , , , , ,

Attorneys Attend Kansas City Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Mortgage Seminar

Posted on December 14, 2008 Written by

In our never ending quest to stay current on developments in bankruptcy law, Mark Neis and Jill Michaux attended an all-day seminar in Kansas City on a new court rule for paying delinquent mortgages through a chapter 13 bankruptcy plan Friday.

Nationally recognized  speakers were O. Max Gardner III of Shelby, NC; Debra L. Miller, Chapter 13 Northern District of Indiana; and Lance E. Olsen, managing partner of Routh Crabtree Olsen, PS, of  Bellevue, WA.

Renown bankruptcy attorney Gardner is an expert predatory home mortgage servicing and a trainer teaching an army of lawyers to fight mortgage abuses at the Max Gardner Bankruptcy Boot Camps.  He has been recognized as a Champion of Consumer Rights by the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys.  [Read more…]

Filed Under: Chapter 13, Kansas Bankruptcy News, Mortgages Tagged: , , , , ,

Walking Away from the House

Posted on December 9, 2008 Written by

Cathy Moran, my blogging colleague on the Mortgage Law Network, discusses whether you should prevent foreclosure and keep the house.  Walking away from the house is one solution for a homeowner who can’t afford to repay the mortgage loan balance and the house is worth at least as much as you owe.  A deficiency judgment, if one is taken in the foreclosure, can be discharged in bankruptcy.  Here is a pay or go calculator to help you assess whether you should walk away from your mortgage.

Filed Under: Discharge, Filing Bankruptcy, Foreclosure, Mortgages Tagged: , , , , , , , , ,

Bankruptcy Law Network Top 100 Blawg

Posted on December 8, 2008 Written by

American Bar Association Journal editors voted the Bankruptcy Law Network Top 100 Blawg for 2008.  Our own Jill A. Michaux is one of 25 lawyers who blog on consumer bankruptcy topics for Bankruptcy Law Network, the most comprehensive online source for consumer bankruptcy information.

BLN authors also write for its sister sites:  Mortgage Law Network, Credit Law Network and Debt Law Network.

Filed Under: Kansas Bankruptcy News Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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