Articles from Nebraska Debt and Bankruptcy Blog

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Is Alimony Protected in Bankruptcy?

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 06/10/2013 - 14:00

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A new court opinion issued by the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals declares that alimony is part of the bankruptcy estate and can be liquidated by the Chapter 7 Trustee unless a specific state exemption protecting the alimony award exists.  In re Mehlhaff, 2013 Bankr. LEXIS 944 (Bankr. D.S.D., Mar. 12, 2013).

Don't Lose Your Tax Refund in Bankruptcy!

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 01/11/2013 - 20:01

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In a few weeks taxpayers will begin filing their 2012 tax returns, and for those taxpayers who are also filing bankruptcy at the same time a large number of them will forfeit the refund to the Chapter 7 Trustee. For nearly 20 years I have witnessed the Chapter 7 Trustee seize tax refunds from unsuspecting debtors. This happens every year, over and over again. The sad part is, this should almost never happen.

Chapter 13 Discharges Divorce Property Settlement

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 12/15/2012 - 16:00

Divorce.jpgA recent ruling by the Nebraska Bankruptcy Court underscores one of the primary differences between the treatment of divorce debts in Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 cases.  (See In re Schulz, Nebraska Adversar

Bankruptcy & Taxes: New Ruling from 8th Circuit Court

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 11/21/2012 - 12:00

The 8th Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel has ruled that a Chapter 13 debtor may not create a special class of unsecured creditors for nonpriority, nondischargeable tax debts at the expense of other unsecured creditors.  In the case of Shawn & Lauren Copeland v. Richard V.

Are Student Loans Becoming Easier to Discharge in Bankruptcy?

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 11/17/2012 - 16:11

Scale of Justice.jpgReading the opinion just issued by the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the 8th Circuit in the case of Shaffer vs. Iowa Student Loan Liquidity Corporation, I am wondering if we are now witnessing a greater willingness of the bankruptcy courts to discharge student loans. 

Social Security Not Considered Disposable Income in Chapter 13

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 11/16/2012 - 03:29

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Two new court opinions were recently handed down by the 5th and 10th Circuit Court of Appeals on the issue of whether Social Security income is considered “projected disposable income” under the Bankruptcy Code.  Projected disposable income is income that must be paid over to creditors during a 3 to 5 year Chapter 13 payment plan.

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