Written by Charleston Bankruptcy Lawyer, Russell A. DeMott Student loans are, practically speaking, almost non-dischargeable in bankruptcy. The Bankruptcy Code and the law interpreting it says, in essence, that the debtor must be disabled and that he must prove he is–and will be–unable to repay the student loans. The fact that you paid a fortune…
Written by Charleston Bankruptcy Lawyer, Russell A. DeMott Filing bankruptcy requires some work. Sure, you expect the bankruptcy lawyer to work, but there’s also some work that the client must do. The straight scoop If you take time to get to know me, you’ll discover that I’m, well, blunt. As subtle as a…
Written by Charleston Bankruptcy Lawyer, Russell A. DeMott The United State Supreme Court has held that a debtor cannot claim the auto ownership expense on the Bankruptcy Code’s means test unless the debtor has a payment on the vehicle. Ransom v. FIA Card Services, No. 09-907 (January 11, 2011). Prior to the Supreme Court’s decision,…
Written by Charleston Bankruptcy Lawyer, Russell A. DeMott Mortgage modification in bankruptcy is a confusing topic. Some say you can. Some say you can’t. As with most bankruptcy issues, the answer is: “It depends.” However, it’s clear that if you have a wholly unsecured mortgage, you can “strip off” or “value” the mortgage…
Written by Charleston Bankruptcy Lawyer, Russell A. DeMott Filing bankruptcy when you’re married usually means both spouses filing together, but not always. The Bankruptcy Code is clear that even when a married couple files together, there are–almost always–two, separate bankruptcy “estates.” That means the husband’s estate is one estate, and the wife’s is another.…
Written by Charleston Bankruptcy Lawyer, Russell A. DeMott I frequently get questions about judgments. Some of the questions I’m asked are: Must I file bankruptcy prior to being sued? Must I file bankruptcy prior to the judgment being filed? Is it true that I can’t discharge the debt once there’s a judgment entered? Once…
Written by Charleston Bankruptcy Lawyer, Russell A. DeMott South Carolina bankruptcy filers will now have to face the reality of lower median income figures starting November 1. “Median” means the 50th percentile–that is, half people in that group are above that point and half below. The Bankruptcy Code’s means test is a key component…
Guest Post by Northern Michigan Bankruptcy Lawyer, Paul Slough There’s no shortage of exploitative “get out of debt” offers. One area ripe with abuse is the arena of non-attorneys who prepare bankruptcy papers. These “bankruptcy petition preparers” are defined in the bankruptcy code as “a person, other than an attorney for the debtor or…
Written by Charleston Bankruptcy Lawyer, Russell A. DeMott In parts one, two, and three, I explained secured debt, liability, how the automatic stay comes into play with reaffirmation agreements, and my opinion about whether you should sign a reaffirmation agreement. I left off with dealing with a situation in which you have equity in…
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