Means test misstatement may be proof of fraudulent intent
THE means test is the IRS based form of calculating disposable income in bankruptcy to determine if the case should be a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13; and if a…
Read More
Use Chapter 13 to handle student loans and taxes
CHAPTER 13 has been popular to strip down junior liens such as 2nd trust deeds and home equity loans. But it can also be used to handle student loans and…
Are taxes discharged in bankruptcy if returns are filed late?
DISCHARGING income taxes owed to the IRS in bankruptcy requires compliance with certain rules. One rule states that the taxes sought to be discharged is for a return that was…
Is principal liable for agent’s fraud in bankruptcy?
YOU are probably familiar with a principal and agent arrangement. The most common is where a person designates another to be his agent for a general or specific purpose using…
Does bankruptcy court have power to void debtor's homestead exemption?
The situation we are going to discuss involves the debtor’s homestead claim of exemption for his residence in a bankruptcy proceeding. In California, the homestead claim of exemption is $75,000,…
Can debtor pre-filing admission of fraud be used to defeat bankruptcy relief?
In this discussion, we envision a situation where a person signs a declaration before he files a bankruptcy admitting that he has defrauded someone, and that if he should file…
Invoking 5th amendment right against self-incrimination in bankruptcy
THE 5th amendment to the United States Constitution states that no person may be compelled to testify against himself. Hence a person may refuse to answer a question on the…
Statutory rapist discharges victim’s damages in bankruptcy court
SEXUAL intercourse with a minor is called statutory rape. Whether the minor consented is irrelevant. If the law states that anyone below 16 is a minor, then carnal knowledge of…
Mentally unstable lawyer discharges $82,000 of students loans
FIRST of all, I am not the lawyer in question although I am able to speak fluent Thai and Russian after 3 bottles of beer and the last judge I…
Adversary complaint to challenge discharge cannot be settled by parties
DEBTOR filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy relief to discharge $150,000 of unsecured debt. Creditor who holds a state court judgment for $50,000 on a signature loan files an adversarial case…
Misrepresentation of debtor’s true income leads to denial of bankruptcy discharge
THE new bankruptcy law requires debtors to calculate their gross and net incomes using the means test form B22. Differences in the calculation of income can result from many factors….
Can trustee force debtor to turnover money that no longer exists?
WHEN debtor filed his Chapter 7 petition, he had $10,000 in his checking account which was used to cover checks issued before bankruptcy was filed. On schedule C, debtor claimed…
Courts divided over home value dates for junior lien strip plans in Chapter 13
Homeowners like the idea of getting rid of the second trust deed on their residence in a bankruptcy. The second trust deed could be a home equity loan or home…
Treatment of non-filing spouse income in bankruptcy
CAN a spouse file for bankruptcy while the other does not? For instance, husband’s gross income is $3,000 monthly. Wife’s income is $8,000 monthly. Husband has $100,000 of credit card…
Postpetition inheritance is part of bankruptcy estate
Suppose you were a Chapter 13 debtor for the last two years of a 48 months plan then your mother dies leaving you as your inheritance a fully paid house…
US Supreme Court to decide fate of inherited IRAs in bankruptcy
THE legal question that is posed is whether or not an inherited IRA is exempt in bankruptcy. For instance, your father died two years ago. You inherited his IRA of…
Afraid of your debt problems, think of Jesus resurrecting daughter of Jarius
Are you worried that your debt problems are insurmountable? Actually, debt problems are small potatoes in the big picture of life, death and life after death. We are temporarily here…
Is lover’s claim dischargeable?
SOMETIMES one lover takes advantage of the other lover by borrowing money that is not repaid. For example, John and Mary are in a relationship. They think that they are…
Celebrate the birth of our Lord and forget about your debt problems
THIS Wednesday the whole Christian world celebrates the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. This is the day 2013 years ago when the son of God, the one…
Worried about debt? Celebrate advent and the birth of our Lord
PEOPLE in the Christian countries celebrate advent and the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ as Christmas. The birth of our Savior is the most significant fact in the history…
Debt problems? Think of Elijah vs Prophets of Baal & Asherah
BOXING fans think that only Pacquiao vs. his current foe is the thing to watch. Basketball fans think it’s Kobe vs. whoever. So, Elijah who was a great prophet of…
Income tax refund is property of bankruptcy estate unless exempt
LET’S say that you decide to file for Chapter 7 relief this month to discharge $100,000 of hospital bills and credit card debt. You anticipate that you will have an…
Discharging income taxes in bankruptcy
(Part 2) LAST week, we established the fact that back due income taxes can be discharged in bankruptcy, despite the popular belief that this was not possible. We said that…
Discharging income taxes in bankruptcy
MANY people have the mistaken belief that back due income taxes cannot be discharged in bankruptcy because a debt owed to the Federal and State government cannot be wiped out….
Worried about debt? Think of Jonah and the whale
THE Bible has a strange story about a man being swallowed up by a whale. This man is Jonah. God, my God, the God of Moses and Israel, who sent…
Your debt problems will fall like the walls of Jericho
THE Israelites have just ended their 40 years of wandering about in the Sinai Desert after God delivered them from 400 years of bondage in Egypt. God, my God, the…
Don’t be weighed down by debt problems: Plug yourself to ultimate power
IT IS hard to imagine why you should not worry about your debt problems, right? Probably everyone reading this article thinks that the right thing to do if you have…
Tired of worrying about debt? Rest in green pastures with Jesus
WE worry about so many things that are not on the right track in our lives. We worry about our children and their future. We worry about our retirement. Are…
Worried about debt, think of Daniel in the lions’ den
MANY debtors feel that their debt problems have placed them in a lions’ den because they feel that their debts will swallow them up alive. Every month every creditor must…
Too much DEBT? Think of Daniel Chapter 3
DEBT problems can become a recurring nightmare for debtors who think they can handle debt problems by themselves. I have told you many times before that if you have debt…