Do you think I worry about these issues too much? the rookie bankruptcy lawyer asked me. The issue was exemption planning and the question was whether instituting an IRA and funding it for the current year before filing was a transfer, and if so, would it be objectionable to a Chapter 7 trustee. We went […]
When Delaying The Discharge May Benefit The Debtor
Ever read, much less used, FRBP 4004(c)(2)? Have to say I’d done neither until Judge Christopher Klein mentioned it at a bankruptcy seminar earlier this year. He told the group that he had learned about it from a pro per who cited it to him in a dispute in a Chapter 7. So what’s this […]
Warning Signs Of A Complex Bankruptcy Case Exposed In The Consultation
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 […]
Learning Bankruptcy On The Job Victimizes Clients
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 […]
Bankruptcy Checklist: Social Security Numbers
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 […]
Bankruptcy Abuse & Schedule J
The debtor passed the means test but lost a motion to dismiss for abuse of the bankruptcy system. Schedule J, the debtor’s projected future expenses, showed a monthly excess of $500. Dollars to doughnuts, the debtor’s bankruptcy lawyer followed the form and the budget provided by the client. Dismissal resulted. What happened here? Two […]
Bankruptcy Schedules Call For Payoff Balance
Bankruptcy debtors hear something different when their lawyer asks, “What do you owe on your mortgage”. It’s as though they speak a different language, Client, while we speak Bankruptcy. As bankruptcy lawyers, we need to be bilingual. It shouldn’t be a trick question, but all too often the answer a bankruptcy lawyer gets back is […]
