In re Jaffe, 18-2726 (7th Cir. August 5, 2019), the Seventh Circuit held that a homeowner’s “contingent future interest” in an otherwise exempt form of home ownership – tenancy by the entireties – was not exempt and was instead prop…
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“Incomes have been largely stagnant for two decades, despite a recent uptick. Filling the gap between earning and spending is an explosion of finance into nearly every corner of the consumer economy. Consumer debt, not counting mortgages, has c…
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This week, the American Bankruptcy Institute posted an article (which is reprinted below) identifying a growing trend that may impact a large sector of the economy: alternative lenders making risky loans. As many know, the 2008-2009 meltdown ensnared…
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In In re Brown, Case No. 18-81242 (Bankr. C.D. Ill. May 9, 2019), Judge Perkins of the Central District of Illinois, concluded that property of the estate did not include that portion of a debtor’s annual bonus payable after the petition date t…
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Last month, the Senate Judiciary Committee reintroduced the Small Business Reorganization Act (SB 1091). SB 1091 is intended to streamline the process for small businesses (those with debts less than $2,566,050) that wish to use Chapter 11 to reorgan…
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In Moore, the bankruptcy court for the Eastern District of Tennessee joined a majority of courts and held that money inherited outside of the 180 day window set forth in § 541 was still property of the chapter 13 estate. In the Moore case, the debto…
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I. Explanation of absolute priority rule Consumer debtors that do not qualify for protection under Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 of the Bankruptcy Code, are left with filing under Chapter 11, where they will come face-to-face with the absolute priority rul…
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An interesting article in Realtor.com explains why mortgage applications are sometimes denied. According to the article, a recent Federal Reserve study concluded that one out of every eight home loan applications (12%) ends in a rejection. The causes…
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According to an article posted today in the New York Times by Tara Segal Bernard, “[f]or a rapidly growing share of older Americans, traditional ideas about life in retirement are being upended by a dismal reality: bankruptcy.” According…
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