Chapter 11 bankruptcies will be easier for businesses with smaller debt loads under a new law that takes effect in February. In August, President Donald Trump signed the Small Business Reorganization Act of 2019. Sponsored by Rep. Ben Cline, R-Va., ...

Tagged with: Bankruptcy

A Roanoke federal judge has upheld penalties against two Virginia lawyers who teamed up with a short-lived, Chicago-based national bankruptcy firm accused of high-pressure sales tactics and litigation misconduct. U.S District Judge Michael F. Urbanski refused to undo $5,000 sanctions ...

Tagged with: Bankruptcy Judge Michael F. Urbanski U.S. District Court - Western District

Where the trustee asserted a fraudulent transfer action against the defendants,  who did not consent to a jury trial in the bankruptcy court and had not filed a claim against the bankrupt estate, the reference to the bankruptcy court was ...

Tagged with: Bankruptcy Judge Glen E. Conrad U.S. District Court - Western District

Where the debtor was induced to buy a bagel business based upon inaccurate information provided by the seller, his objection to the seller’s claim for damages was sustained. But because the debtor received more value from the business than his ...

Tagged with: Bankruptcy Judge Klinette H. Kindred U.S. Bankruptcy Court

Where the debtor alleged a lender was violating Virginia’s usury and consumer finance laws, those were “constitutionally core” claims over which the bankruptcy court could retain jurisdiction. Referring those claims to arbitration would defeat the purpose of the Bankruptcy Code ...

Tagged with: Bankruptcy Judge David J. Novak U.S. District Court - Eastern District

Where a debtor promised to renovate and make repairs to the plaintiff’s real property and then failed to do so, a judgment entered against the debtor was dischargeable because he fully intended to perform at the time he made the ...

Tagged with: Bankruptcy Judge Kevin R. Huennekens U.S. Bankruptcy Court

A Chapter 13 debtor may strip off an unsecured lien from real property that is titled as joint tenants with rights of survivorship, where the joint tenant is not a joint debtor in the bankruptcy case. Background On May 15, ...

Tagged with: Bankruptcy Judge Kevin R. Huennekens U.S. Bankruptcy Court

Where there was a presumption of abuse at the time the debtor filed a voluntary petition, because of the means test calculation, the presumption was not altered by her post-petition decision to trade in her car, resulting in a higher ...

Tagged with: Bankruptcy Judge Brian F. Kenney U.S. Bankruptcy Court

Where the creditor had notice of the automatic stay, violated it by seizing the debtor’s property and then refused to return the property, the court awarded the debtor compensatory damages, attorneys’ fees and punitive damages. Background Jenny Lynn Edwards filed ...

Tagged with: Bankruptcy Judge Rebecca B. Connelly U.S. Bankruptcy Court

Where a settlement agreement was clear and unambiguous and not reasonably susceptible to the interpretation urged by one of the parties, the bankruptcy court’s decision, which adopted the interpretation urged by the trustee, was affirmed. Background This case concerns the ...

Tagged with: Bankruptcy Judge M. Hannah Lauck U.S. District Court - Eastern District