One of Benjamin Franklin’s most famous quotes is, “Certainty? In this world nothing is certain but death and taxes.” With the certainty that is death, it is not surprising that occasionally, after a bankruptcy is filed, a Debtor will die. However, the death of a Debtor does not automatically mean the death of his or…

The Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the U.S. Court of Appeals, Eighth Circuit, ruled that employment bonuses paid to a debtor shortly after she filed for chapter 7 bankruptcy could not be considered part of her bankruptcy case.  The court’s ruling allowed the debtor to keep $24,072.00 in bonuses, and it reversed a lower court’s order…

Stubbornness It’s hard to knock stubbornness, even when it keeps people doing foolish things. After all, stubbornness, the drive to finish what you started, is often a virtue. I’m talking about the attitude that says “these are my debts, and by d***n, I’ll get them paid”. Honorable, but not rational. See how long it takes…

One of the major benefits of Chapter 13 Bankruptcy is the ability to avoid second mortgages that are not secured by any value in your home.  By following standards outlined in the Bankruptcy Code, you can reclassify that loan on your home into the same category as credit cards or other ordinary bills and discharge…

Let’s start with what a reaffirmation agreement is and what it is not. Basically, the filing of a bankruptcy kills most contracts; including car purchases and home purchases.  Once the contract is dead, the secured creditor may retrieve its collateral but cannot go after the debtor for any deficiency if the collateral was sold for…

In 2010, the annual volume of new student loans reached 100 billion dollars. There is now more than a trillion dollars in student loan debt on the books and this type of debt is growing rapidly. A new economic crisis is about to emerge. Student loan debt cannot be discharged in bankruptcy except under the…