In bankruptcy, debtors have the ability to avoid two types of liens, meaning they can remove the lien from the collateral and make the debt unsecured. A lien can be avoided if it impairs a debtor’s exemption to which the debtor would have been entitled if not for the lien. For example, if a debtor […]
BANKRUPTCY: AVOIDING LIENS
In bankruptcy, debtors have the ability to avoid two types of liens, meaning they can remove the lien from the collateral and make the debt unsecured. A lien can be avoided if it impairs a debtor’s exemption to which the debtor would have been entitled if not for the lien. For example, if a debtor […]
BANKRUPTCY: CROSS-COLLATERALIZATION AND CREDIT UNIONS
In bankruptcy, debtors often wish to discharge their unsecured debt but keep their secured collateral. This is generally allowed in bankruptcy, but a practice commonly employed by credit unions makes this process more complicated and often more expensive. The reason is because credit unions often include cross-collateralization clauses in their loan documents. Cross-collateralization means that […]
BANKRUPTCY: JOINT DEBTOR VS. CO-DEBTOR
These two very similar sounding terms have very different meanings. The term joint debtor describes the second person listed on a bankruptcy petition when a married couple files bankruptcy. The first person listed on a bankruptcy petition is the debtor. There is no rule in the Bankruptcy Code that states either the husband or wife […]
BANKRUPTCY: WHAT IS A 341 MEETING?
A 341 meeting, also known as a creditor’s meeting, is presided over by the United States Trustee, and allows creditors and the trustee an opportunity to question debtors about the schedules and statements filed in their bankruptcy case. This meeting is required under 11 U.S.C. § 341 of the Bankruptcy Code, hence the name. Creditors […]