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ABI Journal

November 26, 2019

Rifle Held Exempt as Household Goods in Georgia but Not in Connecticut

Claiming a firearm is owned for defense of the household raises the odds that the gun will be exempt as household goods.

2nd Circuit, Connecticut

November 25, 2019

Medical Bills Are Held to Be Consumer Debts, Invoking the Means Test

Someone forced into bankruptcy on account of medical bills will also be forced into chapter 13.

7th Circuit, Illinois, Illinois Central District

November 19, 2019

Student Loans Discharged in Part, Even Though Debtor Wasn’t Destitute

A bankruptcy judge can afford little relief from student loans, even for sympathetic debtors who try hard to repay their debts.

9th Circuit, Oregon

November 18, 2019

Supreme Court Grapples with ‘Finality’ in Ritzen v. Jackson Masonry

Justices may narrow Bullard by drawing back from the requirement that finality requires a change in the status quo.

Supreme Court

November 15, 2019

First Circuit Starkly Holds that Tuition for an Adult Child Is a Fraudulent Transfer

The case in the appeals court apparently did not involve a student account structured to prevent the college from being the initial recipient of a fraudulent transfer.

1st Circuit

November 14, 2019

Seventh Circuit Holds that Parking Tickets and Fines Are Chapter 13 ‘Admin’ Expenses

Appeals courts won’t allow bankruptcy to shield debtors from paying parking tickets and fines incurred in the course of a chapter 13 case.

7th Circuit

November 13, 2019

A Motion to Dismiss an Involuntary Petition Only Postpones Filing a Creditor List

Ninth Circuit BAP balances the need for quickly dealing with an involuntary petition against the petitioners’ right to discovery and a list of creditors.

9th Circuit

November 08, 2019

Courts Reject BAP Opinion on Estate Property When Individuals Convert from 11 to 7

Individuals in chapter 11 who convert to chapter 7 come out worse that those who convert from chapter 13.

9th Circuit, Arizona

November 07, 2019

One Owner May Strip a Lien Off Property Owned JTWROS, Judge Huennekens Says

Courts disagree on lien stripping by one owner of entireties property and jointly owned property.

4th Circuit, Virginia, Virginia Eastern District

November 06, 2019

Courts Ignore Farrey to Achieve an Equitable Result in a Matrimonial Bankruptcy

In matrimonial cases, courts find creative reasons for not avoiding a lien that impairs an exemption.

11th Circuit, Florida, Florida Southern District