As reported by Robin Miller of CBAR, a Chapter 13 plan confirmation does not preclude IRS offset against debtor’s tax overpayment. The nonbankruptcy right to setoff continues even after confirmation of a Chapter 13 plan. See In re Rivera, 345 B.R. 229 (Bankr. E.D. Cal. 2005). Similarly, the IRS’s procedures under 26 U.S.C. § 6402(a) for…
Archives for 2014
Can a Debtor Establish “Undue Hardship” Despite the Availability of an “Income-Based Repayment” Program with No Payment Due in a Bankruptcy Proceeding?
Yes! As reported by Robin Miller of CBAR, affirming In re Al-Riyami, 2014 WL 2800815 (Bankr. M.D. Ala., Jan. 6, 2014), the district court found no error in the bankruptcy court’s determination under Code § 523(a)(8) that requiring the debtor to repay her student loans would cause her undue hardship, even though, under an income-based…
What are the Factors in Determining Whether a Divorce Provision Constitutes Support or a Property Settlement?
As reported by Robin Miller of CBAR, a Florida Bankruptcy judge has helped to distinguish between a divorce support provision or a property settlement agreement. If the obligation was intended to be a support payment, then Appellant did not discharge the debt in bankruptcy. See 11 U.S.C. § 523(a)(5). If instead the obligation was intended to be a property…
Can a Debtor be Judicially Estopped from Prosecuting an Undisclosed Employment Discrimination Claim?
Yes. As reported by Robin Miller of CBAR, a Chapter 13 debtor was judicially estopped from prosecuting her employment discrimination claim where she obtained confirmation of her plan in her still-active bankruptcy case without disclosing either her prepetition Charge of Discrimination filed with the Florida Commission on Human Relations and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission…
Do I have to Reopen my Chapter 7 Bankruptcy in Michigan and add a Creditor if I Forget to List that Creditor?
No. The 6th Circuit has established an “omitted creditors rule” in the case In re Madaj, 149 F3d 467 (1998). Here is a summary of the Madaj opinion and holding: 1. The confusion regarding the treatment of omitted creditors is due to a line of cases that perpetuates the erroneous view that once a case…
What Children Should Know About Credit in Michigan?
Here is a very insightful post by my good friend and “credit guru” Philip Tirone with www.720CreditScore.com: “Charge it” is a phrase children hear when shopping with parents. It seems so easy to give someone a piece of plastic and get whatever we want. But is that the lesson we really want to teach our…
Student Debt Threatens the Safety Net for Elderly Americans According to Bloomberg
As reported by Natalie Kitroeff from Bloomberg Businessweek, student debt is growing faster for seniors than for any other age group, according to the latest data gathered by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Lingering student loan debt is part of a broader and, many elder-care lawyers say, devastating accumulation of debt among older…