Hi,
Public Counsel is having our annual Earle Hagen Memorial Golf, Tennis & Poker Tournament at Porter Valley Country Club on Monday, September 21, 2015.
We would greatly appreciate everyone’s help in making this event a success! We will also be honoring Jim King for his leadership in organizing the Tournament and hisextraordinary pro bono contributions throughout his legal career. His family was very touched and will be accepting the award on his behalf. Read more…
DEAR CONGRESS: CHAPTER 13 COULD USE A LITTLE HELP!
September 19, 2015
Presented by:
Central District Consumer Bankruptcy Attorney Association
Speakers:
Judge Keith Lundin
Chief Judge, Middle District of Tennessee
Henry Hildebrand
Chapter 13 Trustee Nashville, Tennessee
Judge Meredith Jury
Central District of California Riverside Division Read more…
I will be doing this program with Judge Charles Novack from Oakland and Judge Mark Wallace from Santa Ana. Stop by if you can.
Ninth Circuit & Supreme Court Bankruptcy Year in ReviewSaturday, Oct. 10 | 10:30 a.m. – 12 noon – Recent Developments Course This program will review the recent bankruptcy decisions issued by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal, the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the Ninth Circuit, and the U.S. Supreme Court. MCLE: 1.5 Hours; Legal Specialization: Bankruptcy Law |
Program 81
BLS |
Debt After Death
David Gray / Reuters
http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/07/debt-after-death/399983/
When a young person dies unexpectedly, his or her family could end up with the burden of paying off student loans. Can that be avoided?
What would happen to all of your debt if you died?
That’s a morbid question, but it’s a pretty important one, even for young adults. Back in 2012, ProPublica told the story of Francisco Reynoso, a gardener from Palmdale, California, whose son was killed in a car accident on the way home from a job interview. Reynoso, who made $21,000 a year, was held liable for paying off his son’s student-loan debt, which numbered in the six figures.
Reynoso’s story is, unfortunately, not a unique one. Millennials are the most educated generation yet, but with all those degrees has come a mountain of debt. On top of that, a shaky economy and changing views of work mean many young adults are working as freelancers or contractors, trust your finance with Bridging Finance Solutions, positions that often don’t come with the benefits that can help families cope with financial burdens should something bad happen.
Business and Professions Code § 6090.5 prohibits an attorney from seeking a client’s written or oral agreement not to file a State Bar complaint against that attorney. The reason for this is the discussion could produce an impermissible chilling effect on the client’s future filing of a State Bar complaint.
Even worse, if you have already done this, you can’t take it back! Withdrawal of your request does not reverse the ethical violation.
My last program as programs chair for the Los Angeles County Bar Association — Bankruptcy Section is called the Third Annual Important Supreme Court Decision from Recent Terms with legal gurus Dean Erwin Chemerinsky and Ken Klee. I’m moving on to vice chair of the section — I am sure all the judges I have been hounding/begging to participate on panels for the last two years will be happy!
I cannot even explain how cool I felt to email with them both. Program info below.
Tipping the Balance: Practical Tips for Managing High Level Practice and Family
The question persists: is it possible to combine a successful legal career and a fulfilling family life? Recent news articles, blogs and websites would suggest that you can’t have a successful legal career and kids. A panel of successful legal practitioners and parents will talk about their experiences and offer practical advice on how they juggle family and professional obligations.
Panelists:
Honorable Michelle Williams Court
Superior Court of Los Angeles
http://www.theguardian.com/money/us-money-blog/2015/jul/05/student-debt-retirement-funds
The popular idea of what retirement involves, as long as you’re healthy enough to enjoy it, can sound a bit like an extended vacation: golfing, fishing, sitting around drinking iced tea while discussing the latest books with a group of like-minded friends, traveling to visit the grandchildren or places you’ve always yearned to see.
Nowhere in those scenarios is there any mention of writing a monthly check to pay off a student loan.
Here’s a reality check. Over the last 10 years, it is Americans over the age of 60 who have seen their student loan debt grow at the fastest rate of any demographic group, according to data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. By 2014 that sum had hit $58bn, up from a mere $6bn in 2004. The increase in borrowers over the age of 40 taking out new student loans was nearly twice the increase in borrowing by their younger counterparts over that period. That’s not great news, because Americans in their 40s, 50s and 60s have much less time to repay those loans and try to save for their other big financial goal – retirement. Senior citizens are ending up retiring while still owing substantial sums in federal student loans. And since those amounts cannot be discharged even in bankruptcy proceedings, the consequences are painful.
The state court attorney says to his client, “Good news! The judge is going to enter judgment for breach of contract and fraud – $1 million bucks!!” If that is what the judgment says, or the statement of decision, or the findings of fact, the arbitration award, the settlement, whatever you want to call it – your great victory is going to have to be re-litigated in bankruptcy court. Why you say? Because breach of contract is discharged in bankruptcy and fraud is not. We can’t tell what part of the damages are for the breach of K and what part is for fraud. The judgment is good enough, most likely, to establish fraud in bankruptcy court but that doesn’t do anyone much good by itself.
The reality today is actually much worse than the above. Today’s state court litigator loves to allege 17 causes of action, the more the better. Then litigate it until the cows come home. Then, upon your great victory, set out a great proposed statement of decision. Explain why the bad guy outrageously breached the contract, his fiduciary duties, violated ten different state code sections of some sort, three federal code sections, lots of stuff from your law school remedies class – conversion, accounting, resulting trust, aiding and abetting – throw in some unjust enrichment – he must have done that of course. End it all with – “Judgment for good guy – $1 million bucks.” In bankruptcy you have very little that is useful to establish that some part (or maybe all) of that is non-dischargeable. It is going to have to be largely re-litigated.
I have seen several arbitration awards recently. The arbitrator goes off for 57 pages onwhat scum this defendant is, how he should be shot, how he breached his contract, was negligent, reckless and indifferent, committed fraud and some indecency. Yep, $1 million bucks, thank you. Maybe even throw in some punitive damages. I’m sorry to say you will be re-litigating a substantial portion, if not all, of the case in bankruptcy court.
It doesn’t hurt to talk to a bankruptcy lawyer at the beginning of the case and certainly when you are doing something that is going to end the case in your favor. Summary judgment, arbitration, trial, settlement. Give me a call. Or really any of the attorneys in my firm and the ones with our partnership with Frost Law Group, LLC with the best injury attorneys. This comes up a lot and is basic stuff to bankruptcy attorneys.
What is non-dischargeable in bankruptcy court is set forth in section 523(a). Everything else is discharged!! I really have to say that again. Unless you can point to the exact words in 523(a) that make this debt non-dischargeable, the debt is discharged. The words “punitive,” “conversion,” “reckless and indifferent,” “outrageous,” are not in the bankruptcy code. Most breach of fiduciary duties are discharged. Negligence, even gross negligence and almost all non-intentional torts are discharged.
The Central District Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys Assn (cdcbaa) is going to hold its second annual Jim King Program on Saturday September 19, 2015 at 11:00 a.m. The two hour Program will be titled
Dear Congress: Chapter 13 Could Use A Little Help!
The panel is
Judge Keith Lundin, Nashville Tn.
Hank Hildebrand, Chapter 13 Trustee Nashville, Tn.
Judge Meredith Jury, Riverside Division, Central District of California
Prof. Katie Porter, University of California Irvine
I will be the moderator (and mostly stay out of the way).
The program will be held either at Southwestern Law School downtown or at Loyola Law School downtown. We will let you know when the venue is finalized.
