What New Bankruptcy Lawyers Need To Know: Beyond The Code

The Unrecoverable Bankruptcy Mistake

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

Which of the blunders by prior counsel in Chapter 13 threaten a problem for which no good fix exists? Failure to timely assume the lease for the sole proprietorship liquor store. And it was a near run thing for me as well. This couple brought me their pending Chapter 13, fraught with trustee objections, inconsistencies, and omissions, you name it. But the one rat's nest which better … [Continue reading...]

Do I Have To Read All The Code First?

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

Following the announcement of a class I was to teach on bankruptcy fundamentals, a reader called and told me he had embarked on reading the entire Code and Rules. "Should I wait to take the course til I've completed that? " he asked. I was so inclined to shout "Hallelujah, a rookie reading the Code!" that I almost lost the point I wanted to make: take the course to find the Code sections you … [Continue reading...]

Lien Stripping & Service On The Bank

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

By the end of the afternoon, the judge was pretty tired of turning down lien strip motions for the same old, and avoidable, reason: lawyers hadn't served the bank involved properly. There's a rule for this: FRBP 7004(h) says a federally insured depository institution (read: bank) is served by certified mail addressed to an officer of the institution. That's not hard, especially when the … [Continue reading...]

The Evolution Of A Bankruptcy Lawyer

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

Every contrivance of man, every tool, every instrument, every utensil, every article designed for use, of each and every kind, evolved from a very simple beginning. - Robert Collier We have all evolved from a simple beginning - our law degrees. Those simple pieces of parchment enable us to sit for the bar, gain admission to practice law and, ultimately, take our place among those who help … [Continue reading...]

Self Education: Risky Stuff for Rookie Bankruptcy Lawyer

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

The usual road to a good education is to seek out the best teacher or the school with the deepest resources; you want people who know the field thoroughly to pass that knowledge on to you. So, why is it that the field of bankruptcy law these days is overrun with lawyers trying to pick up bankruptcy law on their own and on the fly? Maybe's it's the American, can-do attitude or our admiration for … [Continue reading...]

Warning Signs Of A Complex Bankruptcy Case Exposed In The Consultation

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

Is an initial consultation an opportunity to prevent problems later on in the case? Should you be doing more? I've taken my swipes at my clients' previous lawyer in a prior post for either missing or ignoring issues that needed to be picked up and addressed in the schedules and the Chapter 13 plan. Some of the discussion with readers suggested I was being harsh about inexperience or that the … [Continue reading...]

Learning Bankruptcy On The Job Victimizes Clients

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

I admit, up front , that I'm steamed. The clients in my office have a pending Chapter 13 case. People know the difference between a lawyer fighting a marijuana possession charge and bankruptcy case. They made an appointment with me because their bankruptcy attorney missed a hearing and doesn't return their phone calls or respond to their questions. The trustee has a three page objection to … [Continue reading...]

Learn Bankruptcy Shorthand: Till

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

Part of the lingo of bankruptcy practitioners are the names of notable bankruptcy cases that establish basic principles of bankruptcy law. Ever heard a Chapter 13 trustee or opposing counsel talk about the Till rate? Did you scour the Wall Street Journal looking for the published Till rate? Scour, instead, your favorite listing of hit cases from the Supremes. Till was a Supreme Court … [Continue reading...]

Don’t Fall for Excluding the Business Credit Card

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

Business owners facing bankruptcy are often firmly convinced that only their business is liable for the "business" credit card in their wallet. It sometimes takes more energy to persuade them that they are individually liable for that card than it does to convince them that life continues after bankruptcy. In fact, even when the business is conducted by a corporation or LLC, the business … [Continue reading...]

Bankruptcy Debtors: Beware the Bank

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

Do you ask your prospective bankruptcy clients where they bank? It matters, you know, if they owe that bank money. The common law right of set off can make your client's revered bank branch as big an enemy as the debt collectors. My clients are often worried about the collectors who call on the phone and harass them about their bills. I have to point out that they call because they don't … [Continue reading...]

Bankruptcy Planning & The Means Test

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

The rookie bankruptcy lawyer reported her client had borrowed from his 401(k) and proposed to pay down some taxes before filing. Two questions popped to my mind: Are the taxes which the client was worried about priority taxes? If so, would the absence of those taxes alter the results of the means test analysis? Debtors frequently don't grasp that some taxes are dischargeable. They have … [Continue reading...]

6 Basic Points About Tax Liens in Bankruptcy

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Start Here, Tax

Everywhere I've looked this week, new bankruptcy lawyers are struggling with client tax liens. Here's my list of basics you need to know about federal tax liens. Tax liens create a secured claim in favor of the taxing authority. That claim incurs interest at the statutory rate.Exemptions, bankruptcy or state, are not effective against tax liens, which are statutory liens.Tax … [Continue reading...]

Bankruptcy Checklist: Social Security Numbers

By Cathy Moran, Esq. Filed Under: Bankruptcy Practice

Do you check the client's proffered Social Security number against the number on their tax return? I'd never thought to do so til my partner returned from a 341 meeting with this story. She was sitting waiting for our client's turn at a first meeting of creditors when the trustee asked a debtor about the fact that the Social Security number on the petition didn't match the number on the … [Continue reading...]

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