Owoc v. Liquidating Trustee on Behalf of Liquidating Trust, — F.4th —-, 2026 WL 2294569 (11th Cir. August 10, 2026) (click for .pdf). The issue on appeal was whether a corporate debtor’s Subchapter S election constitutes property of the bankruptcy estate. Pursuant to a Chapter 11 plan, the debtor corporation’s reconstituted board removed the sole… Continue Reading
On July 1, 2026 the Georgia Homestead Exemption increases from $21,500.00 to $50,000.00 for an individual debtor, or a double exemption of $100,000.00 if a non-filing spouse is also a co-owner. This is a dramatic increase for Georgia, and opens up Chapter 7 for many people who are facing bankruptcy and may otherwise have had… Continue Reading
A recent Order from our Bankruptcy Court highlights several important considerations when choosing a bankruptcy lawyer and planning your case. On June 26, 2026, Judge Sacca, joined by the other judges in the Northern District of Georgia, entered a 147-page Order permanently disbarring a lawyer and law firm from practicing in Bankruptcy Court. The Order… Continue Reading
Make sure you are disclosing ALL property, including any personal injury or other claims you might have against any other party. That includes disclosing it after your Bankruptcy case is filed in a Chapter 13 case. I expect the debtor might prevail on remand because he apparently promptly notified his Bankruptcy lawyer after the accident.… Continue Reading
In a case of first impression, the Eleventh Circuit addressed the intersection of Copyright Law and Bankruptcy Law, and whether an artist’s statutory copyright termination rights are property of the Bankruptcy Estate. Lil’ Joe Records, Inc. v. Mark Ross, Luther Campbell, et al., 2026 WL 1549151 (11th Cir. June 2, 2026) (click here for .pdf).… Continue Reading
In In re Newport 222 Mitchell Street, L.P., 2026 WL 1488930, Ch. 7 Case No. 24-54060-sms (Bankr. N.D. Ga. May 27, 2026) (click here for .pdf) a creditor sought to compel the Chapter 7 Trustee to furnish information voluntarily provided to him by another creditor on a confidential basis. The basis for the motion was… Continue Reading
If you are contemplating filing for Bankruptcy and own a home, you probably will want to consider waiting a few weeks. Georgia Governor Brian Kemp has signed House Bill HB 1024, which increases the Georgia Homestead Exemption from the current $21,500.00 to $50,000.00 effective July 1, 2026. If the residence is titled in the name… Continue Reading
Coney Island Auto Parts Unlimited, Inc. v. Burton, Trustee, 2026 WL 135998 (January 20, 2026) (click here for .pdf). In 2014, Debtor Vista-Pro Automotive, LLC filed an adversary proceeding against Coney Island to recover $50,000.00 in unpaid invoices. Coney Island did not answer and a default judgment was entered in 2015. In 2021, the Trustee… Continue Reading
“Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.” Samuel Beckett in Worstword, Ho. Many have tried to extend the deadline for discharge complaints that is found in Bankruptcy Rule 4007(c), almost always after missing the deadline. The Eleventh Circuit recently affirmed that equitable tolling still does not apply to extend the deadline… Continue Reading
In Barger v. Rocket Mortgage, LLC, Adv. Proc. No. 23-5164-bem, 2025 WL 1416871 (Bankr. N.D. Ga. May 15, 2025), the Chapter 7 Trustee sought to avoid a deed because every letter of the notary’s name was not fully discernible in the signature. The Court previously granted summary judgment to the lender/transferee and the Trustee sought… Continue Reading
In re Thomas, Ch. 13 Case No. 24-10535-RMM, 2025 WL 1373615 (Bankr. M.D. Ga. May 12, 2025). Debtors’ Chapter 13 Plan proposed to reduce the secured creditor’s claim to the value of the manufactured home that served as collateral. The sole legal issue was whether a manufactured home that was Debtors’ residence was a “motor… Continue Reading
In Watson v. Bradsher and Ali, 2025 WL 2205853 (11th Cir. August 4, 2025), the Debtor met Plaintiffs at a bar and invited one of them to go home with him. She sternly rejected his advances and moved with her friend to another part of the bar. Debtor tried to pay his tab and could… Continue Reading
In In re Kimball, Ch. 7 Case No. 24-11036-pmb, 667 B.R. 487 (Bankr. N.D. Ga. 2025) (click here for pdf) , the Lender foreclosed on commercial property owned by a limited liability company on August 6, 2024. The LLC, in turn, was owned by an individual Debtor who had filed a Chapter 13 case on… Continue Reading
In In re Cady, Ch. 7 No. 24-41026-ejc, 2025 WL 1587266 (Bankr. S.D. Ga. June 4, 2025) the issue was whether the Debtor, a real estate agent, could claim an exemption in her vehicle as a tool of the trade. In addition to claiming vehicle and wild card exemptions, Debtor argued that her vehicle was… Continue Reading
In In re Antman, 2024 WL 4786241, Ch. 13 Case No. 23-60317-ejc (Bankr. S.D. Ga. Nov. 14, 2024), the debtor’s father died in 1996 and in his will left his house to debtor and her three siblings in equal shares. Debtor and her husband had lived in the house since 1999. Debtor filed a Chapter… Continue Reading
I am straying off the strict topic of Bankruptcy law and into an area of general litigation and attorney ethics that has come up in one of my pending cases. When it is OK for a lawyer to pay, or offer to pay, a witness in a pending case? The common sense answer that probably… Continue Reading
It is expensive to stay in Bankruptcy. Last month a Brown Rudnick lawyer tried to increase his hourly rate from $1,000 per hour to $1,500 per hour. Chief Judge Laurie Selber Silverstein in Delaware rejected the increase, “saying that no client would approve such a steep fee hike in the middle of a case.” See… Continue Reading
I don’t typically post about new Chapter 11 filings unless there is something compelling about them, but almost 300 Chapter 11 cases for Lavie Care Centers and related entities filed on the same day qualifies as news here in the Northern District of Georgia. The Motion for Joint Administration alone is 49 pages, most of… Continue Reading
In a very detailed 91-page Order entered in the Northern District of Georgia- and adopted by all Judges in the District – Judge Sacca addressed serious concerns of the United States Trustee over the handling of a Chapter 13 case by the Debtor’s lawyer. The United States Trustee is also investigating several other cases with… Continue Reading
The Third Circuit Court of Appeals issues a reminder to debtors’ counsel that they can protect themselves with beneficial (boilerplate) terms in a Chapter 11 Plan. In In re SC SJ Holdings, LLC, 2024 WL 1328233 (3rd. Cir. March 28, 2024), the Debtor was the owner of a hotel that was operated by Accor Management… Continue Reading
An entire blog could be devoted to the intersection of Bankruptcy and divorce, but for this post we will look at what happens when a divorce decree (or final settlement agreement) requires that one of the spouses transfer his or her interest in real property to the other spouse, but before the actual transfer is… Continue Reading
… at least in Judge Sigler’s Court in the Northern District of Georgia. Primary Investments Group, Inc. v. RA Custom Design Inc., 2024 WL 607716, Adv. Proc. No. 23-05193-sms (February 13, 2024). The holding is consistent with most courts that have ruled on the issue, with the exception of the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals… Continue Reading
It seems like violations of the discharge injunction get much less publicity than violations of the automatic stay. Perhaps that is because by the time a discharge is entered the creditor has received the message. When there is a violation the Eleventh Circuit has a good body of law on the issue and I happen… Continue Reading
If you have a business, you have no doubt received advertisements for “merchant cash advances,” “merchant loans” or “merchant financing,” whether or not those specific terms are used. If in doubt, just do a search for those terms and you will get a couple pages of sponsored ads (but be warned the big brother of… Continue Reading
