What New Bankruptcy Lawyers Need To Know: Beyond The Code

Use All Channels to Educate Bankruptcy Debtors

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Counseling clients

The skill set of a consumer bankruptcy lawyer must include a healthy dose of the skills of a teacher. The client has to master any number of legal issues and procedures to make informed decisions about the case. An effective lawyer has a plan for how to convey all those things the debtors need to know. As the parent of children with learning disabilities, I learned that each … [Continue reading...]

The Change We Need In Consumer Bankruptcy Practice

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Opinionated

The American Bankruptcy Institute under the leadership of retired Judge Eugene Wedoff is gathering input for a review of changes needed in consumer bankruptcy law. I was privileged to offer my thoughts at NACBA's 25th annual convention in May. Good Morning, I'm Cathy Moran. I've practiced bankruptcy law in the Silicon Valley, in California's Northern District, for 37 years. I've … [Continue reading...]

Hammered By Rule 3002.1

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Real property, Rule 3002.1

To my mind, Rule 3002.1 is the most powerful, most under-utilized tool in our tool box. And its power is coming to the fore as Chapter 13's filed during the Great Recession wind to a close. Don't let your home-owning client leave Chapter 13 without a determination that they are current. Or, if they are not current, without a plan for addressing the default. Rule spotlights mortgage … [Continue reading...]

Corporate Bankruptcy: So We Can Start Over

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Business bankruptcy

Thou shalt not file bankruptcy for a corporation. It's almost a commandment from on high in my practice. But for every rule, there is an exception and the man sitting in front of me called on the exception. He wanted, (or really "needed") to stay in the same line of construction work. But business was bad, there was a supplier suing the corporation, and then there was that pesky, … [Continue reading...]

Bubble, Bubble, Toil and Trouble

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Opinionated

I find I'm back at the Bankruptcy Mastery keyboard. Several years ago I thought I had said all there was to say here to new bankruptcy lawyers. But stuff just keeps bubbling to the forefront and my fingers itch. It seems there's more to say, perhaps not exclusively to newbies, but to the broader community of consumer bankruptcy lawyers. What's up in bankruptcy The law is changing. … [Continue reading...]

Picking Your Chapter 11 Teammates

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

Professionals in Chapter 11 have to be "disinterested"; make sure they are also capable. You should read this post here if you are keen about taxes. In two recent cases, the estate has employed professionals connected to the debtor in his pre filing past. It's often the case that accountants and tax preparers come with familiarity with the debtor that seems useful. You think that it's economic … [Continue reading...]

What Keeps Me Busy

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

The number of new cases through my doors is down, just like it is everywhere. But I'm staying busy. Busier some days than I would like to be. I thought it might be fun to look at the change in the composition of my cases over the past two years. More complicated cases There don't seem to be any simple cases anymore. Debtors who have managed to avoid filing bankruptcy til this late in … [Continue reading...]

Bankruptcy Sales Free And Clear

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Real property

Now that the real estate market in my area is improving, we are dusting off another of our little used skills to effect sales of property during a Chapter 13: the sale free and clear of liens. The ability to sell property subject to disputes and continue the fight over a bank account, rather than a piece of property, is one of the real treasures in the Bankruptcy Code. A sale free and … [Continue reading...]

When Just-In-Time Is Just Right

By Mark Markus Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

Getting things done and off your desk is usually a good modus operandi for an attorney. But sometimes, waiting until the last minute is better. The Required Bankruptcy Courses Since 2005 when the Bankruptcy Code was most recently amended with changes known as the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act ("BAPCPA"), debtors filing bankruptcy are required to take two … [Continue reading...]

Phantom Creditors In Bankruptcy

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Before filing

Don't overlook in rem liability when scheduling creditors. These phantom creditors often waft through the lives of debtors. The client may not see them, but as debtor's lawyers,we must pull those creditors into the light. Phantom creditors may have no claim against the debtor personally, but nonetheless, need to be scheduled. Liabilities of property In rem is nifty-sounding Latin, the … [Continue reading...]

Can You Tell A Lien From A Secured Claim?

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

The underwater second deed of trust was listed on Schedule F in the debtor's prior Chapter 13 case as an unsecured claim. Functionally, the lien was without value. But, the debtor, now my client in a subsequent case, took a gentle tongue lashing from a bankruptcy judge about the classification of the claim on the schedules. As a debtor you need to choose a reliable lawyer, like this BOI company … [Continue reading...]

How To Insure The Judgment Isn’t Discharged In Bankruptcy

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

The settlement agreement, fully executed, provided explicitly that the obligation was not dischargeable in bankruptcy. So how come the successful resolution stood to go up in flames when the defendant filed bankruptcy? Because the terms of the settlement agreement didn't track the elements of the bankruptcy code's elements for non dischargeable debts. With agreed facts, the … [Continue reading...]

Married: Assorted Bankruptcy Exemption Issues

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Family Law in Bankruptcy

Our series on family law and bankruptcy continues with an exploration of a mixed bag of exemption and property-of-the-estate questions colored by the fact the debtor has been married. Non debtors claim exemptions Section 522(b) opens with a provision that the debtor may exempt from the property of the estate property described in the section or in applicable state law and non … [Continue reading...]

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