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U.S. Trustee Audits to Resume
As recently reported in the Wall Street Journal, the U.S. Trustee recently announced a resumption of audits of consumer bankruptcy cases to start March 10. Those audits had been suspended due to budgetary constraints. Under federal law, the U.S. Trustee…
Using Bankruptcy to Reinstate a Suspended Driver's License
Under certain circumstances, the filing of a bankruptcy case can help reinstate a suspended driver’s license. Oregon law provides that a driver’s license can be suspended for a variety of reasons. The types of suspensions relevant to this discussion include…
Voiding Judgment Liens in Bankruptcy
Under Oregon law (ORS 18.150), a judgment entered or registered in the county where the debtor owns real property generally becomes a lien against that property. Theoretically, a lien creditor may have the right to foreclose on the lien in…
Be Careful When Loaning Money to Someone You Meet on Match.Com!
A recent opinion (Murray v. Hanley) from Judge Dunn of the Oregon Bankruptcy Court is a good illustration of why it may not be a good idea to loan substantial amounts of money to someone you meet online. In that…
Solving Tax Problems Using Chapter 13 Bankruptcy
As discussed in one of our previous blog posts, Chapter 13 Bankruptcy can be a very powerful tool to solve a fairly wide variety of financial problems. One of the more common uses of Chapter 13 is to solve tax…
Preventing Home Foreclosure Using Chapter 13 Bankruptcy
As discussed in one of our previous blog posts, Chapter 13 Bankruptcy can be a very powerful tool to solve a fairly wide variety of financial problems. One of the most common uses of Chapter 13 is to save a…
Lender Mediation Now Required Before Residential Trust Deed Foreclosure
On June 4, Governor Kitzhaber signed Senate Bill 558 which now requires mortgage lenders to offer a “resolution conference” with the homeowner before recording a “Notice of Default” to initiate a non-judicial foreclosure or before filing a lawsuit to initiate…
Computer Problems No Excuse For Missing Filing Deadline (aka The Perils of Electronic Filing)
I read a rather interesting case today from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals where an attorney missed a filing deadline and attributed it to computer difficulties. The case of Anwar v. Johnson concerned a creditor’s attempt to have the…
Federal Exemptions Now Available in Oregon
On July 1, 2013, Governor Kitzhaber signed Senate Bill 396 which now allows Oregon residents to use federal exemptions when filing for bankruptcy. Previously, Oregon residents were limited to exemptions provided for under Oregon law As discussed on our web…
Supreme Court Rules on What Constitutes "Defalcation" By a Fiduciary
The Bankruptcy Code embodies the “fresh start” principle, the idea that people who have made mistakes in their financial lives, or who have simply been the victims of bad luck, can seek refuge in bankruptcy, and discharge their debts. As…