Title 11 of the United States Code (the “Bankruptcy Code”) provides a fresh start to the “honest but unfortunate debtor.” Chapter 7 therefore permits a debtor to “discharge their outstanding debts in exchange for liquidating their nonexempt assets and distributing them to their creditors.” Dismissals in chapter 7 are governed by section 707 of the Bankruptcy Code. Section 707(a) governs all chapters of bankruptcy filings and applies when adequate “cause” is shown.
Abstract:
Bankruptcy law in the United States is race-neutral on its face but, in practice, race matters in bankruptcy outcomes. Our original research provides an empirical look at how the facially neutral laws that allow debtors to retain assets in bankruptcy cases result in disparate outcomes for Black and white debtors. Racial differences in asset retention in bankruptcy cases play a role in perpetuating wealth inequality between Black and white debtors.
The bankruptcy court overruled the chapter 7 trustee's objection to the debtor Catherine Myatt's claimed exemption in her interest in her former husband's 401(k) retirement account.
As of February 14, 2024, the revised Department of Justice (DOJ) guidelines for discharging student loan debt are still under evaluation after their initial implementation in November 2022. Here's what we know:
Mortgage creditors struggle to properly service mortgages in chapter 13 cases, as evidenced by numerous cases describing violations of Bankruptcy Rule 3002.1. The consumer bankruptcy system, however, is not calibrated to compel system wide compliance from these large, institutional repeat actors. This Essay argues that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is well-suited to support the consumer bankruptcy system by exercising its monitoring and enforcement powers to promote, and even compel, mortgage creditor compliance in chapter 13 cases.
