Articles from DIAMOND LAW on Bankruptcy and Related Topics

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MAYBE HELP WILL COME - STOP FORECLOSURE ??

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 05/23/2011 - 17:33

I have written several blogs which address the blight of the homeowner in trouble because of the recent economic downturn.  I’m talking about people who borrowed an affordable sum after making a down payment to purchase their dream home. Until the recent economic downturn these homeowners made their monthly payments ( in many cases for years). Then layoffs started.  In a great number of cases it was impossible to replace lost jobs at their salary range..  Many were forced to accept jobs paying less. By the time life starting getting back to normal, their mortgage payments were way behind.

Foreclosure - If You Wait Too Long!

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 19:37

   Prior to the enactment and implementation of the federal bankruptcy laws designed to help people keep their homes there were always a few people in trouble and waited too long before seeking bankruptcy legal advice on Chapter 13.  These few were faced with the bitter truth that their failure to act promptly resulted in their home being lost to a lender at foreclosure.  Fortunately, in the past, this situation only rarely occurred.

When Redemption of Consumer Goods Makes Sense in a Chapter 7?

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 09/10/2009 - 02:33

In the previous Blog I discussed Reaffirmation, which is one of the ways for a debtor in Chapter 7 bankruptcy to keep property secured by a lien such as an automobile.  There are alternatives to reaffirmation. There are two ways to eliminate a debt secured by property, one of which is to give the property back to the creditor and the other allows you to keep the property by redeeming it as allowed by the bankruptcy laws. 

Why Some Reaffirmation Agreements Are Approved And Others Are Not?

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 08/30/2009 - 01:53

A reaffirmation agreement is a contract that is used in a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy case that must be approved by the Bankruptcy Judge, in most cases without a court hearing.  In general, the purpose of this agreement is to agree to repay what is owed to a creditor, in almost all cases the debt is secured by something that the debtor bought and wishes to keep.  A good example would be an automobile.  If the Debtor wishes to keep the car and still owes money on the car, he/she must agree to continue to pay for the car. 

MEANS TEST TWEAKED, SCORE TWO POINTS FOR THE CONSUMER

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 08/29/2009 - 01:14

The "Means Test" became law as part of the Bankruptcy Consumer Protection Act Of 2005.  The test is mandated by the bankruptcy code including a long, vague and confusing explanation of exactly how to set up the test, which was left to the Office of the United States Trustee.  The backbone of the test is derived from the Internal Revenue Code.  The test has gone through more than a few changes as people in charge attempted to make the test fit the statute and has been subject to a number of court rulings both by the Bankruptcy Courts and the Courts of Appeal.  Two (2) changes that have recen

Copies Vs. Originals at Your Bankruptcy's 341 Meeting

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 08/27/2009 - 22:58

Required by law, the first request that a trustee for a Chapter 7 or a Chapter 13 bankruptcy makes of a debtor is to see his driver's license and social security card in order to establish the identity of the debtor.  The trustee is fulfilling his obligation to identify the debtor by seeing an original driver's license, because it has a picture of the debtor and then matches the social security number against the name on the card and then compares the same against the bankruptcy paperwork.  There are, of course, other forms of identification that will work just as well such as a military id

A NEW EVIL HAS EMERGED - DEBT RELIEF STOREFRONTS

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 08/26/2009 - 19:44

Oh my God, today I spoke with a woman who was considering bankruptcy as a way to get out from under her credit card debt.  She like most people would rather pay off her debts than file for bankruptcy especially when you can wrap your arms around your debt total.  I applaud your ethics and values.  Sometimes, based on how much you owe in credit card debt it could take years and years and years to pay off especially due to mounting interest rates.  Some of these debt relief storefronts are no better in helping you than the exorbitant interest rates charged by the credit card companies.  Getti

DISCHARGABILITY OF STUDENT LOANS IN BANKRUPTCY

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 08/19/2009 - 20:20

In an average bankruptcy case, regardless of the chapter (7,13) filed, student loans are not dischargeable.  In the Western District of Texas, payments on student loans may not be included in a Chapter 13 Plan unless such plan proposes to pay the unsecured creditors 100% of their claims.  Instead, student loans are deferred until after the Chapter 13 plan has been completed. All the while interest is accruing on these loans. 
There are possibilities that present opportunities to discharge student loans, as set forth below: 

Pay Day Loan Companies Are Cunning!

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 08/14/2009 - 01:48

Lots of people seeking help from a bankruptcy lawyer to file a Chapte 7 (eliminate unsecured creditors) or a chapter 13, have one or more payday loans.  Payday loans are difficult to deal with for both the client and the bankruptcy lawyer.  The companies that offer these loans seem to know every trick in the book to continue  receiving payments, as well as avoiding having their addresses known so they cannot be notified of a bankruptcy filing.  The only way to prevent such a lender from collecting on their loan is to close the bank account upon which the lender collects its

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