Consumer Bankruptcy

Test committee post

Proven Fraud Won’t Always Cut Down the Amount of a Homestead Exemption, BAP Says

To limit the amount of a homestead exemption under Section 522(q)(1)(B)(ii), the fraud must have occurred after the debtor became a fiduciary.

A Promise Not to Enforce a Judgment Meant There Was No Discharge Violation

The inability to modify a Section 524(a) discharge put the Ninth Circuit BAP in a bind.

Sixth Circuit Restricts Ability to Surrender Collateral and Modify a Chapter 13 Plan

Once a chapter 13 plan is confirmed, a debtor in the Sixth Circuit may not surrender collateral and treat the deficiency as an unsecured claim.

There’s Reciprocal Fee-Shifting in California When a Contract Has Unilateral Fee-Shifting

In California, bringing litigation with a marginal possibility of success could be a bad bet whenever a contract permits one side to recover attorneys’ fees.

Comparative Fault Doesn’t Require Reduced Attorneys’ Fees for Discharge Violations

Seventh Circuit holds that comparative fault requires a reduction in compensatory damages for a discharge violation but not for a debtor’s attorneys’ fees.

Inside ABI July 2025

July 2025

Legislative Highlights July 2025

July 2025

State Bar Disciplinary Proceedings Aren’t Barred by the Automatic Stay or Discharge

A BAP decision raises the question of whether Ninth Circuit authority has been implicitly overruled by Supreme Court decisions.

Faculty Biographies (2025 Central States Bankruptcy Workshop)