2nd Circuit

May a Chapter 13 Plan Pay a Larger Percentage Toward Student Loans?

Since Congress has made student loans virtually nondischargeable, why can’t a chapter 13 plan discriminate in favor of paying more toward student loans?

Technicalities Insulated a Lawyer from Liability for Misusing an IOLA

A creditor lost a dischargeability suit by failing to call the right witnesses to prove that a lawyer’s trust account was used to hide assets.

A Chapter 11 Filing Can Extend an Inflexible Closing Date by 60 Days

Filing a chapter 11 petition to obtain an automatic 60-day extension of a closing date is not a bad faith filing, Judge Bernstein says.

Courts Interpret Brunner Too Harshly, Bankruptcy Judge Cecelia Morris Says

A debtor with a law degree but only $37,500 in gross annual income was permitted to discharge more than $220,000 in student loans.

Second Circuit Again Applies the ‘Safe Harbor’ to Protect Selling Shareholders in an LBO

The Supreme Court’s Merit Management opinion fails to persuade the Second Circuit to change the result in Tribune.
Court: 

Holding a Contempt Hearing May Be Ok, but the Remedy Might Violate Automatic Stay

A contempt hearing fell under the ‘criminal’ exception to the automatic stay, but jailing a debtor to coerce payment of a prepetition debt violated the stay, Judge Grossman ruled.

Mortgage Servicer Blew the Statute of Limitations, Judge Grossman Says

New York intermediate appellate courts are split on critical questions about the ‘start date’ for the statute of limitations on mortgage foreclosure.

Rifle Held Exempt as Household Goods in Georgia but Not in Connecticut

Claiming a firearm is owned for defense of the household raises the odds that the gun will be exempt as household goods.

Second Circuit Explains when Default Judgments Qualify for Issue Preclusion

Discovery abuse in a prior lawsuit can result in nondischargeability in a later bankruptcy.
Court: 

Immediately Withdrawing the Reference Is ‘Absurd,’ District Judge Says

Defendants in lawsuits by Lehman Brothers are stuck in bankruptcy court until the cases are ready for a jury trial.

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