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A former commercial real estate agent and businessman who pled guilty in 2012 to various federal charges was recently sentenced in court. Michael Wayne Harding, 59, of Keswick, Virginia pled guilty to one count each of bankruptcy fraud and wire fraud after waving his right to an indictment. Harding will complete 30 months in federal... Read more »
The post Virginia Man Sentenced 30 Months in Prison for Wire and Bankruptcy Fraud Charges appeared first on AllmandLaw.
A filing fee needs to be paid to the Clerk of the Bankruptcy Court when a bankruptcy case is filed. The Judicial Conference of the United States Court announced that effective June 1, 2014, the filing fees for filing a bankruptcy will go up slightly. The new filing fee for a chapter 13 case rise from $281.00 to $310.00 and the filing fee for a chapter 7 case will rise from $306.00 to $335.00.
(305) 891-4055 - Jordan E. Bublick is a Miami Bankruptcy Lawyer with over 25 years of experience in filing Chapter 13 and Chapter 7 Bankrkuptcy Cases.
A filing fee needs to be paid to the Clerk of the Bankruptcy Court when a bankruptcy case is filed. The Judicial Conference of the United States Court announced that effective June 1, 2014, the filing fees for filing a bankruptcy will go up slightly. The new filing fee for a chapter 13 case rise from $281.00 to $310.00 and the filing fee for a chapter 7 case will rise from $306.00 to $335.00.
Jordan E. Bublick is a Miami Bankruptcy Lawyer with over 25 years of experience in filing Chapter 13 and Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Cases and Mortgage Modifications (305) 891-4055
Bringing you the most up-to-date news, tips and blogs throughout the web. Here’s your Bankruptcy Update for April 15th, 2014 Apollo’s Momentive Performance Files for Bankruptcy Brass Instrument Maker S.E. Shires Files for Bankruptcy Mt. Gox founder won’t appear in U.S. for questions about bankruptcy case
Women’s clothing retailer Coldwater Creek has filed for bankruptcy. The business, originally known as a catalog business 30 years ago, recently filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Delaware. Coldwater had over 300 store locations in operation but cited declining sales and the downturn of the economy. At one point, the company had revenue peaking at […]
If you’re behind on your private student loans, being sued may be the best thing to happen to you.
The client called in a panic, looking for a lawyer to defend a student loan lawsuit that she’d received the previous evening. $78,000 due as a result of a failed attempt to get through graduate school, the amount was laughable for someone barely making ends meet in Los Angeles.
She needed help, and fast. Her anxiety and fear was palpable.
By the end of our consultation, the client was grinning ear to ear.
A Student Loan Lawsuit Is Not A Judgment
Most people who are being sued don’t understand that when a lender – student loan or otherwise – sues you, that’s merely the beginning of the process. The lender wins only if you do nothing, in which case they take a default judgment against you.
Defend the case, however, and you force the student loan folks to prove every single shred of their case before they have a chance of winning. That includes answering the following questions:
- Does the entity suing you actually own the loan?
- Is the loan legally collectible, or has it been rendered unenforceable due to the expiration of the statute of limitations?
- Is the amount claimed to be due correct?
A Student Loan Lawsuit Makes It Easier To Negotiate
If you owe money for a student loan debt, you’re getting calls and letters from debt collectors. Most of the time, those debt collectors are hired by the servicer of the loan as opposed to the entity that owns the debt.
Even in the rare situation involving a debt collector hired directly by the owner of the loan, the debt collector doesn’t have much authority with respect to negotiating a settlement or payment plan.
Once a lawsuit is filed, however, a lawyer is involved. The lawyer’s got a more direct line to the student loan lender, and a greater ability to work out an agreement with respect to paying off the loan.
The Worst Case Scenario May Be Better Than You Realize
If you don’t defend the lawsuit – or if you defend the case and lose – you’ll be subject to a judgment. The student loan creditor can take a portion of your wages by way of enforcement of the judgment.
That’s bad, right? Not necessarily.
Under California wage garnishment law, for example, a judgment creditor can take the lesser of your earnings above 40 times the state minimum wage, or 25% of your after-tax wages. That means if you don’t earn much, you may end up paying very little to your student loan. The judgment accrues interest at 10% per year, but is valid for only 10 years. Once the judgment expires, you’re no longer liable for the remaining balance.
Compare that with the crushing monthly payment the lender is demanding from you. If the garnishment amount is lower than the amount being demanded, then the judgment may not be such a bad thing after all.
Be sure to review your state’s wage garnishment laws before you make the decision to let the student loan lawsuit go to judgment.
No Fear!
If you get served with a student loan lawsuit, it’s not the end of the world. Whether you find a student loan lawyer with white knowledge or fight the case on your own, remember that you’ve got options.
The key is to take action quickly, and understand the process from all angles.
The automatic stay in the most powerful tool when filing bankruptcy. The automatic stay provides a shield of protection against most collection efforts. In the video below, we discuss just how powerful the stay is when filing a bankruptcy case. David Siegel: Let’s talk about what’s created the minute a bankruptcy case under Chapter 7+ Read MoreThe post Filing Bankruptcy And The Creation Of The Automatic Stay appeared first on David M. Siegel.
Real Housewives stars Teresa and Giuseppe “Joe” Giudice only paid a small fraction of their debt obligations in the total of $7,500 according to their bankruptcy trustee. Due to criminal charges against the couple it is likely creditors can pursue them for payment again. They have outstanding debt obligations of more than $13 million. The […]
In previous blogs, I have written introductory information about the basic process in chapter 13 bankruptcy. In this next series of articles, I will discuss some of the issues surrounding chapter 13. In order to file chapter 13, you must be an individual with regular income. There are limits to the amount of debt you can have and still be eligible to file chapter 13. As of April 1, 2013 the limits are now $1,149,525.00 for secured debt and $383,175.00 for unsecured debt. These numbers are adjusted every three years. If you are close to these numbers, be sure and contact our office to get the current applicable limitations.The post Chapter 13 Bankruptcy appeared first on Tucson Bankruptcy Attorney.
The bankruptcy code provides that the bankruptcy estate includes, with certain exceptions, all legal or equitable interests of the debtor as of the date of the filing of the bankruptcy case. 11 U.S.C. § 541 (a). Section 541 (d), though provides that property in which the debtor only holds "legal title and not an equitable interest" becomes part of the estate only to the "extent of the debtor's legal title to such property, but not to the extent of any equitable interest in such property that the debtor does not hold." The district court stated that the "plain language of section 541 (d) provides that if a debtor holds only legal title to property and not an equitable interest, then the equitable interest in such property is excluded from the estate."
In the case of In re: Marcos Antonio Campuzano, Case 11-CV-22929-KAM (S.D. Fla. 2012), the district court reviewed and upheld the bankruptcy court's ruling that the involved bankruptcy debtor only held bare legal title to a certain boat. The district court noted that this finding was supported by the unrefuted testimony of three witnesses and was therefore not clearly erroneous. The Bankruptcy Court's ruling was based on the unrefuted testimony of witnesses, whom the court deemed credible, that the debtor did not make any payments towards the purchase price of the boat, did not have control of the boat, did not have access privileges at the marina, did not use the boat, and did not have any interest in using the boat. Further testimony was that the debtor agreed to put the title to the boat in his name as at the time of the purchase, the actual owner was not a permanent resident of the United States and had concerns about his ability to be on the title to the boat.
(305) 891-4055 - Jordan E. Bublick is a Miami Bankruptcy Lawyer with over 25 years of experience in filing Chapter 13 and Chapter 7 Bankrkuptcy Cases.
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