Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Klein said it was ‘nonsense’ to argue that ‘a Bankruptcy Court lacks authority to permit survivor statements to be made to the Court and to the Bishop.’
On a question where the courts are split, Bankruptcy Judge Pamela McAfee sides with the majority and holds that a chapter 13 debtor can’t sell co-owned property.
New York’s Judge Philip Bentley and Prof. Robert Lawless urge Congress to adopt the ABI Commission’s recommendations for dealing with bad faith filings.
The ‘probate exception’ to federal subject matter jurisdiction does not prevent bankruptcy courts from basing decisions on state trusts and estates law, except in limited circumstances.
