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Posts tagged as “Bankruptcy”

3rd Cir. Holds Failure to Turn Over Collateral Repossessed Prior to Bankruptcy Does Not Violate Automatic Stay

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit recently held, in a case of first impression in that circuit, that a secured creditor’s failure to turn over collateral repossessed prior to the filing of the bankruptcy petition does not violate the automatic stay. A copy of the opinion in In re Denby-Peterson is available at:  Link to Opinion. The debtor’s automobile was repossessed after she defaulted on her installment loan. She then filed a voluntary petition under Chapter 13 of the Bankruptcy Code, notified her creditors and demanded the return of the automobile. The creditors did not comply, and the…

5th Cir. Holds Bankruptcy Courts Cannot Enforce Discharge Injunctions From Other Districts

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit recently held that a bankruptcy court lacks the power to enforce discharge injunctions entered in other districts, and that the debtors’ particular private education loans were not excepted from discharge. A copy of the opinion in Crocker v. Navient Solutions, LLC is available at:  Link to Opinion. Two debtors obtained student loans, one to prepare for his bar exam, and the other to fund tuition and expenses to attend a vocational school, from a “for-profit, public corporation whose loans are not part of any governmental loan program.” The loans were then transferred…

5th Cir. Holds Bankruptcy Discharge Violations Not Always Subject to Arbitration

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit recently affirmed a bankruptcy court order denying a bank’s motion to compel arbitration, holding that when a debtor seeks to enforce a discharge injunction, a bankruptcy court may decline to compel arbitration because it implicates a bankruptcy court’s ability to enforce its own orders. A copy of the opinion in Henry v. Educational Financial Service is available at:  Link to Opinion. A borrower took out a student loan and subsequently filed for Chapter 13 bankruptcy. The bankruptcy court confirmed the plan.  The borrower made the payments to her creditors, including her…

7th Cir. Holds Creditor Liable for Its Counsel’s Bankruptcy Discharge Violation

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit recently affirmed in part and reversed in part a trial court’s judgment against a debtor who filed an adversary proceeding alleging that a creditor and its counsel violated the bankruptcy discharge by trying to collect a discharged debt, holding that the attorney could not be held in contempt because he lacked knowledge of the discharge, but the creditor could be held liable for the actions of its counsel under agency law. A copy of the opinion in Jacqueline M. Sterling v. Southlake Nautilus Health is available at:  Link to Opinion. The plaintiff…

7th Cir. Holds UCC Financing Statement May Incorporate List of Collateral by Reference

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit recently reversed a bankruptcy court’s ruling that a lender failed to perfect its security interest because its UCC financing statement failed to provide sufficient indication of the secured collateral under Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code. In so doing, the Seventh Circuit concluded that under the Illinois version of the UCC, a financing statement’s reference to an unattached security agreement sufficiently “indicates” the secured collateral as required by Article 9, and need not “contain” a specific description of the collateral within its four corners. A copy of the opinion in…

11th Cir. Holds No Violation of Bankruptcy Discharge for ‘Informational Statement’

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit recently affirmed the bankruptcy court’s denial of a debtor-borrower’s motion for sanctions, which alleged that her mortgage loan servicer violated her bankruptcy discharge by mailing a communication in a purported attempt to collect upon a discharged debt. In so ruling, the Eleventh Circuit held that the purportedly violative letter, entitled “Informational Statement,” which provided an amount due, due date, and payment instructions, coupled with a disclaimer, did not constitute an unlawful attempt at debt collection, because the servicer had not foreclosed the subject property and the borrower had the option to…

SCOTUS Adopts ‘Objectively Reasonable’ Standard for Violations of Bankruptcy Discharge Orders

In determining the legal standard for holding a creditor in civil contempt for attempting to collect a debt in violation of a bankruptcy discharge order, the Supreme Court of the United States adopted an “objectively reasonable” standard, and held that a court may hold a creditor in civil contempt if there is “no fair ground of doubt” as to whether the order barred the creditor’s conduct. Accordingly, the Supreme Court reversed the Ninth Circuit’s ruling, which had applied a subjective standard for civil contempt. A copy of the opinion in Taggart v. Lorenzen is available at:  Link to Opinion. The…

6th Cir. BAP Holds Ohio Law Did Not Invalidate Lien When Non-Borrower Spouse Signed Mortgage But Not Note

The Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit recently affirmed a lower bankruptcy court’s ruling that a refinanced mortgage was enforceable as to the interests of both husband and wife, where the wife did not execute the note and was not defined as a “borrower” in the body of the mortgage, but nonetheless initialed and signed the mortgage document as a “borrower” in the signature block. In so ruling, the Sixth Circuit BAP considered the Ohio Supreme Court’s answers to two certified questions stating that failing to identify a signatory by name in the…

7th Cir. Holds Mortgagee’s Deficiency Claim in Bankruptcy Was Precluded by Failure to Raise in Foreclosure

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit recently held that a mortgagee’s failure to take a deficiency judgment against a borrower who filed bankruptcy in a concluded state foreclosure action precluded the mortgagee from making a deficiency claim in the borrower’s bankruptcy proceeding. A copy of the opinion in BMO Harris Bank N.A. v. Anderson is available at:  Link to Opinion. Two borrowers received a loan secured by a mortgage.  They defaulted on the loan and the mortgagee filed a two-count complaint in Illinois state court seeking relief under the mortgage and the note. One of the borrowers and his wife later filed…

8th Cir. Holds State Court Judgment Did Not Preclude Bankruptcy Court from Enforcing Its Own Orders

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit recently affirmed a trial court judgment holding a bank and its principal in contempt and sanctioning them for violating a bankruptcy discharge injunction, based on the findings in a parallel state court proceeding. In so ruling, the Eighth Circuit held that the state court judgment did not preclude the bankruptcy court’s ability to enforce its own orders. A copy of the opinion in First State Bank of Roscoe v. Stabler is available at:  Link to Opinion. A bank issued a loan to husband and wife borrowers for their business. After the business failed,…

9th Cir. Holds Debtor Who Successfully Challenges Automatic Stay Fee Award Also Entitled to Appellate Fees

In a case of first impression, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently held that a debtor who successfully challenges — as opposed to a debtor who defends — an award of attorney’s fees and costs for violations of the automatic stay under § 362(k) of the Bankruptcy Code is entitled to an award of appellate fees and costs. In so ruling, the Court reversed the trial court’s order denying the debtor’s motion for appellate attorney’s fees and costs, and remanded the matter to the trial court with instructions to remand to the bankruptcy court to calculate…

11th Cir. Rejects Argument That Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Discharged Mortgage Loan

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit recently held that a mortgage loan with a post-plan maturity date was not discharged in a Chapter 13 bankruptcy because the plan did not “provide for” the debt and modify the repayment terms of the mortgage. The Eleventh Circuit also held that the debt was not discharged because discharge would violate 11 U.S.C. § 1322(b)(2)’s anti-modification provision for mortgages secured by the debtor’s principal residence. A copy of the opinion in Mildred M. Dukes v. Suncoast Credit Union is available at:  Link to Opinion. The debtor had two mortgage loans on her…