On March 16, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released a compliance bulletin entitled Unfair Billing and Collection Practices After Bankruptcy Discharges of Certain Student Loan Debts. The compliance bulletin focused on the treatment of certain private student loans following a bankruptcy discharge. It’s also another example of the CFPB’s efforts to expand bankruptcy
The Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians (Lac du Flambeau Band) found support from law professors specializing in federal Indian law as well as an assemblage of tribes and Native American groups in its bid before the U.S. Supreme Court to assert sovereign immunity from suit regarding alleged violations of the automatic
In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court held that § 523(a)(2)(A) of the Bankruptcy Code precludes a debtor from discharging a debt obtained by fraud, regardless of the debtor’s own culpability. In Bartenwerfer v. Buckley, issued February 22, the Court concluded that “§ 523(a)(2)(A) turns on how the money was obtained, not who committed
On January 19, the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Virginia entered an order sanctioning a collections law firm for violating the bankruptcy discharge injunction. The court in Skaggs v. Gooch (In re Skaggs) awarded the debtor $25,000 in attorneys’ fees based on a letter he received concerning a discharged
On January 9, the Seventh Circuit overturned its own 39-year-old precedent to find that: (1) the definition of “transfer” for purposes of section 547 of the Bankruptcy Code depends on federal, not state, law; and (2) the date of “transfer” is the time at which the money passes to the creditor’s control.
At a high
On July 19, 2022, the Ninth Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel ruled that a creditor’s proof of claim — while meeting the standard of the Bankruptcy Code — was insufficient to enforce the debt under state law and was therefore subject to disallowance.
In In re Myers, included on the debtors’ chapter 13 scheduled debts
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has released guidance to its attorneys regarding requests to discharge student loans in bankruptcy cases. The 16-page memorandum developed in coordination with the Department of Education (DOE) advises DOJ attorneys to “recommend to the court that a debtor’s student loan be discharged if three conditions are satisfied: (1) the
When deciding the amount of homestead exemption to which a debtor is entitled, should a bankruptcy court apply the state exemption in effect on the creation date of the lien or on the bankruptcy filing date? According to the Ninth Circuit in a recent decision, the court should apply the state exemption law in
Throughout the latter half of 2022, filing for bankruptcy became a reality for many high-profile crypto firms. The resurgence of “crypto winter” has brought many crypto-related entities to their proverbial knees. Indeed, in November 2021, the total cryptocurrency market capitalization reached an all-time high of approximately $3 trillion. That figure has decreased substantially, and today
Please join Consumer Financial Services Partner Chris Willis and his colleagues Deborah Kovsky and Tom Tilton as they discuss new pending legislation — the Consumer Bankruptcy Reform Act — as well as the general, overall legislative and financial services outlook in the next Congress.
Finance and Restructuring Partner Deb Kovsky represents secured and unsecured creditors