lien

Comedian John Oliver Explains the Debt Buying “Industry” and Zombie Debt

06/10/16

Late night comedian John Oliver recently offered his unique and humorous take on the debt buying industry, noting that collection agencies are responsible for more lawsuits than any other type of plaintiff, and that many of these lawsuits claim money damages for zombie debt.  Zombie debt is debt that is not legally collectible because the statute of limitations has run.

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Massachusetts Homesteads Cannot Be Attached

05/27/13

It’s obvious, in hindsight.  If home equity is protected by a Massachusetts homestead, then a creditor should not be able to put a pre-judgment attachment lien on that home equity.

(A Massachusetts homestead automatically protect $125,000 of home equity from creditor  liens. It protects $500,000 of home equity if there is a recorded declaration.  It gets complicated with multiple owners.)

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Judgment Liens: No Longer Avoidable in Southern Illinois Bankruptcy Court?

08/26/12

An old adage says that liens “pass through bankruptcy” unaffected.  As old adages go, it’s right as much as it’s wrong.  Particularly when referring to judgment liens against someones home which are normally subject to “avoidance.”  But a July, 2012 court decision puts that in doubt for Southern Illinois residents.

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Mortgage Liens Declared Invalid in Central Illinois Bankruptcy Court

08/17/12

A Central Illinois Bankruptcy Court Judge ruled the trustee who oversees administration of a bankruptcy case can avoid mortgage liens that do not comply with an Illinois law that requires the mortgage contain notice of the interest rate, loan amount and maturity due date.  See In re Crane [Crane vs. Richardson, CDIL 11-09067], on appeal to US District Court.

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Decision in In re J. Silver Clothing, Inc., Holds that §547(c) "Substantially Contemporaneous" Transfers are not Governed by a Bright Line Rule under §547(e)

05/04/11

Summary

In a 28 page decision signed April 29, 2011, Judge Gross of the Delaware Bankruptcy Court determined that in order for a transfer to be considered “substantially contemporaneous” as used by Bankruptcy Code §547(c), it does not necessarily need to comply with the timing requirements of §547(e). Judge Gross’s opinion is available here (the “Opinion”). 

Background

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What is "Lien Stripping" and Can I Use it to Reduce my Mortgage Payments

12/20/10

mortgage lien stripWith the decline in Atlanta area housing values, a seldom used bankruptcy technique has taken on new life.  The technique is called "lien stripping" and it arises from Bankruptcy Code Section 50

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