Blog
Calm Down Everybody, Changing the Bankruptcy Code is Actually Really Complicated
I don’t know what sorts of news outlets you subscribe to, but around here this week, we were inundated with reports of President Obama instructing his administration (somewhat vaguely, it seems) to look into tweaking the bankruptcy code to do…
The Perils of Leaving Chapter 11 Too Quickly
No one likes being in bankruptcy. In fact, one of the great attractions of chapter 7 is that most cases are relatively short and debtors are sent merrily on their way within a few months of filing. But for companies or individuals who…
False Statements on Rental Application Leads to Exception from Discharge
Remember that fib you told on your rental application? The one where you said that you’d never been evicted before, even though you had, eight months earlier? Guess what? It matters. At least that was the ruling in Yankah v. Mack,…
Philip Sasser named a "Rising Star" by Super Lawyers
Sasser Law Firm associate Philip Sasser was named a 2015 business bankruptcy “Rising Star” by Super Lawyers Magazine. He is one of only two Raleigh debtors attorneys to receive that distinction this year.
NY Judge Slaps Wells Fargo for an Obnoxious Company Policy
Wells Fargo has a policy of freezing debtor bank accounts that have a balance of more than $5,000. Don’t look for the source of this policy in the bankruptcy code, rules, or jurisprudence. Don’t look for it in the “best…
A Trustee Gets His Fees Cut - Finally
Here is how a bankruptcy liquidation is supposed to work: a trustee sells a debtor’s non-exempt assets and distributes the proceeds to the debtor’s creditors based on the order of priority set forth in the bankruptcy code. It makes sense…
Chapter 7 Lien Stripping?
It has been settled law in every circuit but one that wholly unsecured subordinate mortgages could not be stripped-off in chapter 7 cases. But since it only takes one heterodox circuit to create a split in the circuits, the US…
Single Asset Realty Entities in Chapter 11
Single asset reality entities (SARE) are viewed with some suspicion in bankruptcy courts. Bankruptcy is supposed to serve one of two purposes: either it officiates the fair and equal distribution to creditors of what can be gained by selling off…
Third-Party Releases: Mirage or Reality?
Small-business owners are routinely required to co-sign on loans obtained by their companies. That makes perfect sense from the lender’s perspective (after all, the more people responsible for a loan, the more likely it is that the loan will be…
June 2014 Bankruptcy Statistics
June 2014 bankruptcy filings totaled 73,816 in the United States bringing the nationwide total to 479,362; a 12% decrease from the 544,561 total filings during the same period last year. According to the American Bankruptcy Institute, this is also a…
