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Members of ABI's Commission on Consumer Bankruptcy recently discussed the recommendations in the Final Report focused on the Code's credit counseling and financial management course requirements, and means test provisions. The Commission's recommendations address provisions established by the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 (BAPCPA) that made obtaining the financial fresh start of bankruptcy more challenging for consumer debtors. Retired Bankruptcy Judge Randall Dunn moderates the discussion with John Rao of the National Consumer Law Center, Ariane Holtschlag of the Law Office of William J. Factor, Ltd. and Wendell Sherk of SkerkLaw. Click here to listen. 

Click here to download your copy of the Final Report of the ABI Commission on Consumer Bankruptcy. 

The "Honoring American Veterans in Extreme Need Act of 2019” (HAVEN Act) was included in the House-passed version of the National Defense Authorization Act for 2020 (the NDAA). The HAVEN Act was previously included in the Senate’s NDAA that passed on June 27. If not passed sooner as a standalone bill, the HAVEN Act should be part of the final version of the NDAA that will eventually become law. Timetable for ultimate passage is unclear as there are material differences between the Senate and House versions of the NDAA. The Senate and House will eventually conference to reconcile those differences. Once that’s done, that amended version of the NDAA will need to be approved, again, by both the full Senate and the House, after which it will go to the White House for signature. Meanwhile, efforts to enact the HAVEN Act on a standalone basis continue, according to ABI's Veterans' Affairs Task Force. The House Judiciary Committee “marked up” the HAVEN Act earlier this week, and reported it to the full House without any proposed amendments to it.