When filing for bankruptcy and owning a home, it is important for a debtor to understand they will still have an obligation to the mortgage lender. With Chapter 7 bankruptcies the obligation is fairly obvious, the debtor will continue to make the normal monthly mortgage payment to the lender, but in a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, the debtor’s obligation may be less obvious. 

Divorce and a bankruptcy tend to go hand and hand. Often the question comes up, what should come first, the bankruptcy or the divorce. Depending on the facts of your specific case one should consider the consequences how a divorce may impact a bankruptcy filing. 

Avoidance actions are claims to avoid a transfer of property by the debtor that was made voidable by the Bankruptcy Code. Avoidance actions include claims to recover fraudulent transfers and certain preferential transfers made too close in time to the filing of bankruptcy. The action is brought for the benefit of the estate and therefore belongs to the estate.

When filing a bankruptcy petition, the debtor is required to value of all of their assets. The value should be based on the current fair market value of the asset. The debtor needs to use logic and fact when determining the value of the assets. While most debtors are not experts on the value of all the assets that they own, at the time of the bankruptcy filing, the debtor is in a unique position to make a fair estimate on the value of the asset. The debtor knows the current condition of the asset, what is wrong with it, how well it has been maintained when it was purchased, and for how much. Additionally, many debtors have recently tried to sell their assets before filing for bankruptcy, to avoid filing, and they know the market and asking price for the asset. 

For questions or concerns about information on the petition, the debtor will be required to supply relevant explanations. Supplying the required evidence, documents and explanations may seem daunting, but is it part of the process to ensure that bankruptcy debtors continue to be honest and forthcoming on their petitions.  

If your case is selected for audit, the U.S. Trustee will select an audit firm to conduct the audit. The firm will review all the documents filed with the court looking for material misstatements of income, expenses, or assets. 

 A debtor who completes his payments under a Chapter 13 plan is entitled to a discharge of the debt that is provided for by the plan. 

The State of Minnesota does offer a property tax refund. The Tax Refund Act provides three types of refunds: (1) a refund for homeowners whose property taxes are above a certain percentage of their household income, Minn. Stat. § 290A.04, subd. 2 ; (2) a refund for renters whose rent constituting property taxes exceeds a certain percentage of their household income, and (3) a refund for homeowners whose property taxes increased substantially.

When filing bankruptcy the debtor is required to file a bankruptcy petition. The petition includes information about the debtor’s income, assets, creditors and other required disclosures. The debtor files the petition under the penalty of perjury that all the information contained in the petition in true and correct. 

When filing a bankruptcy petition the debtor must file a financial statement which includes a schedule of the assets that are part of the bankruptcy. This includes any current or future interests the debtor may have, including causes of action possessed by the debtor at the time of filing. 

Filing for bankruptcy is available to honest debtors to allow them respite from their creditors. Even those debtors that have previously filed for bankruptcy relief are allowed to file again for bankruptcy. For those debtors with previous bankruptcy filings, they may not be entitled to a discharge or other protections allowed to bankruptcy debtors depending on the status of their previous cases and when their previous bankruptcies were filed. 

Under section 523(a)(6) in the bankruptcy code, "any debt . . . for willful and malicious injury by the debtor to another [person]" is not dischargeable. 11 U.S.C. §523(a)(6). 

To determine “willful and malicious injury” the facts of the incident must be analyzed. The bankruptcy code itself lacks definition for these terms. 

Starting the bankruptcy process can seem like a lonely time. It can be defeating to feel like you have no other options, but the bankruptcy process is meant to provide individuals relief. And even though you may feel like no one you know has had to file bankruptcy, you may be surprised to learn all the people you know who have had to file bankruptcy in the past. 

Even if the studies show that reducing working hours per week is beneficial to both for employers and employees, how do we get there? The federal government-meaning your elected officials-will have to pave the way. Similar to the path of the 40 hour work week, and some states like California and Maryland have already proposed this legislation.

The need to limit the working hours per week was a necessity, but why was the 40 hour work week selected as the standard? 

The 40 hour work week was signed into law in 1940 as part of The Fair Labor and Standards Act, but should society continue to allow this standard? To understand if the 40 hour work week should remain, we must first discuss the origin of the 40 hour work week, and how we came to accept this standard for the past 70 years.