BLT (Bankruptcy Lawyer Topics) is a periodic review and comparison of consumer bankruptcy topics being covered on bankruptcy lawyer blogs.

Holding a J.D. and an International Affairs M.A. from Marquette University, Matt Leichter (matt [dot] leichter [at] gmail [dot] com) is an attorney licensed in Wisconsin and New York.  He speaks Japanese and focuses on comparative and international law, as well as international business.

• Click on BK Lawyer Blogs for a state-by-state list of bankruptcy lawyers with their own blogs.
• Have a blog or know a good blog post you think should be included? Or a suggestion for a future BLT theme?  Send an e-mail to BLT [at] bankruptcybill [dot] us with the link.
• Suggestion to bankruptcy lawyers with blogs: Make sure to include a “Search” function somewhere on your blog.  It makes it easier to find topical posts on your blog and increases the likelihood that a post from your blog will be included in BLT.

GENERAL or NON-STATE SPECIFIC

A Clean Slate – the Bankruptcy Law Blog by Andy Winchell

• Four Ways That Student Loan Debt Is Like a Tattoo

American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI) Bankruptcy Blog Exchange

• Proposed Bill Would Change Role of Student Loans in Bankruptcy
• Handling Student Loans Outside of Bankruptcy
• Student Loan Disasters
• The Worst Debt You Can Have: Student Loans: Part I, Part II, and Part III
• What Can I Do about My Student Loans?
• Student Loans: Here’s the Best Way to Pay Them in a Chapter 13 Plan

Bankruptcy Law Network

• Student Loan “Undue Hardship” Must Exist at Time of Filing Bankruptcy Case
• $480,000 Student Loan Debt Disqualifies Applicant From Obtaining License to Practice Law
• More Student Loans, School Expenses Not Discharged in Bankruptcy
• Should You Tap Savings or Borrow for College?
• Student Loans: Paradise for Debt Scavengers
• Will Changes in Student Loan Law Help Me?
• Student Loan Forgiveness, Fact or Fantasy?
• What Is a College Degree Worth to a 45-year-old Woman?

***SEE MORE BLOG POSTS FROM BANKRUPTCY LAWYERS AROUND THE U.S.*** (more…)

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Bankruptcy Billables is an overview of bankruptcy-relevant coverage and discussion from various law-related blogs.

Holding a J.D. and an International Affairs M.A. from Marquette University, Matt Leichter (matt [dot] leichter [at] gmail [dot] com) is an attorney licensed in Wisconsin and New York.  He speaks Japanese and focuses on comparative and international law, as well as international business.

Credit Slips

• Resolution Authority: The New Court, What’s Wrong with the Dodd Bill, What’s Wrong with the Republicans’ Argument, Is It Constitutional?, Safe Harbors
• The President on Financial Reform
• How to Find the Owner of Your Mortgage
• Can You Deduct an Expense for a Car You Own?
• Putting the Bankruptcy Option Back on the Table for Distressed Homeowners
• Collateral and Derivatives
• Wanted: People with Good Credit for Low-Paying Jobs

Going Concern

• One of These Things Is Not Like The Other: How Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers Hid the Ball from Investors
• The FASB Punts Repo Accounting to the SEC
• Fuld: Ernst & Young “Supported” Lehman’s Repo 105 Treatment
• Did Lehman’s Arrangement with Hudson Violate Accounting Principles?
• Why a Big 4 Failure Is Imminent and What It Will Mean

Point of Law

• Group: Bankrupt Chemical Maker Owes another #9 Billion

WSJ Bankruptcy Beat

• Basketball ‘Bad Boy’ Mahorn Files for Bankruptcy
• Volcano Disrupts Aluminum Maker’s Chapter 11 Case
• Hacker’s Friends Save Assets from Seizure
• Judges Back New Bankruptcy Disclosure Rules
• LyondellBasell Execs Set for Big Paydays
• Citadel Wants Investor to sell 16M Shares
• Hecker’s Assets Tagged for Auction
• The Daily Docket: San Diego Bankruptcy Talk Called ‘Silly’
• Graffiti-Covered Fuld Portrait Could Be Valuable Asset
• Philadelphia Newspapers, Lenders Continue to Clash in Court
• Ex-Franchisee Seeks Relief for Taco Del Mar ‘Disaster’
• Blixseth among Delinquent California Taxpayers
• Bankruptcy Nixes Coyotes as All-Star Game Host
• Lease Trouble Could Spell End for Vegas Night Club
• Ex-NBA Star Derrick Coleman Files for Bankruptcy
• Dykstra Strikes Back at Bankruptcy Judge

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Bankruptcy Billables is an overview of bankruptcy-relevant coverage and discussion from various law-related blogs.

Holding a J.D. and an International Affairs M.A. from Marquette University, Matt Leichter (matt [dot] leichter [at] gmail [dot] com) is an attorney licensed in Wisconsin and New York.  He speaks Japanese and focuses on comparative and international law, as well as international business.

Above the Law

• Supreme Court Tackles Student Loan Debt
• Breaking: Ninth Circuit Stiffs Anna Nicole Smith’s Estate

Going Concern

• Accounting News Roundup: Dodd Requests Investigation of Lehman “Accounting Manipulation”; Ernst & Young Makes Case to Audit Committee Members; House Passes Health Care Reform | 03.22.10
• Ernst & Young Looking at More Civil and Criminal Liability for Lehman Failure
• Ernst & Young: Talking Points on Lehman Brothers

Credit Slips

• Ambac & the Safe Harbors
• Credit Bidding
• Today’s Consumers Prefer Chapter 7 Bankruptcy 3 to 1
• Consumer Protection & Bank Soundness
• The Financial Stability Oversight Council
• Financial Consumer Protection—The Last Thing We Need Is Federal Banking Oversight
• Debt and the People, Part II: The Hot…and Concluding Disquietudes [Read Part I here]

WSJ Bankruptcy Beat

• Trustee Slams Dykstra’s Bid to Exit Bankruptcy
• The Daily Docket: Bankruptcy for Ambac?
• The Daily Docket: Lehman Seeks Investment Partner
• Salon Files for Bankruptcy on Eve of Owner’s Trial
• Chrysler Seeks American Motors Retirees
• The Daily Docket: VP Warned Lehman Execs
• Hecker Accused of Ransacking Family’s Trust Funds
• Visteon Shares Soar on…Well, Anyway, They Soar
• Maker of Green Products Seeks to Recycle Its Debt
• The Daily Docket: Bankruptcy for Blockbuster?

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BLT (Bankruptcy Lawyer Topics) is a periodic review and comparison of consumer bankruptcy topics being covered on bankruptcy lawyer blogs.

Holding a J.D. and an International Affairs M.A. from Marquette University, Matt Leichter (matt [dot] leichter [at] gmail [dot] com) is a Brooklyn-based attorney licensed in Wisconsin and New York.  He speaks Japanese and focuses on comparative and international law, as well as international business.

• Click on BK Lawyer Blogs for a state-by-state list of bankruptcy lawyers with their own blogs.
• Have a blog or know a good blog post you think should be included? Or a suggestion for a future BLT theme?  Send an e-mail to BLT [at] bankruptcybill [dot] us with the link.

Suggestion to bankruptcy lawyers with blogs: Make sure to include a “Search” function somewhere on your blog.  It makes it easier to find topical posts on your blog and increases the likelihood that a post from your blog will be included in BLT.

GENERAL or NON-STATE SPECIFIC

American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI) Bankruptcy Blog Exchange

• A Closer Look at the Orleans Homebuilders Bankruptcy [via Delaware Bankruptcy Litigation]
• Hecker’s Troubles Signed, Unsealed, Delivered [via Bankruptcy Beat]
• Prosecutors Bring Bankruptcy Fraud Charges Against Hecker [via Bankruptcy Beat]
• Drama Continues for Death Row [via Bankruptcy Beat]
• The Daily Docket: Freedom Wins OK on Chapter 11 Plan [via Bankruptcy Beat]

ARIZONA

Brian Dault, Esq. (Dault & Associates PLLC) – Phoenix Bankruptcy Lawyer Blog (Chandler, AZ)

• College Football Star Files Bankruptcy, Surrenders Championship Ring

***SEE MORE BLOG POSTS FROM BANKRUPTCY LAWYERS AROUND THE U.S.*** (more…)

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Bankruptcy Billables is an overview of bankruptcy-relevant coverage and discussion from various law-related blogs.

Holding a J.D. and an International Affairs M.A. from Marquette University, Matt Leichter (matt [dot] leichter [at] gmail [dot] com) is an attorney licensed in Wisconsin and New York (two months as of tomorrow!).  He speaks Japanese and focuses on comparative and international law, as well as international business.

Law Shucks

• Kaye Scholer Screws Up, Apologizes
• Cadwalader Trying to Prove Us Wrong

Credit Slips

• De-Tour: CSD Nudity on the Exotic Fringe
• Debt and the People, Part I: The Cold
• Avoid Chapter 11 at All Cost!!!
• Half-Empty or Half-Full: The February Bankruptcy Figures
• The Ban on “Universal Default”
• Half a (Rotten) Loaf is Worse Than None at All: The Fate of the CFPA
• Fringe Banking, Financial Distress, and the Consumer Financial Protection Industry

WSJ Bankruptcy Beat

• Hecker’s Troubles Signed, Unsealed, Delivered
• The Daily Docket: Examiner Finds Claims Against Lehman Execs
• Drama Continues for Death Row
• Experts: Sitcom Logic Won’t Work in Distressed Companies
• The Daily Docket: Freedom Wins OK on Chapter 11 Plan
• Lenny Dykstra Wants Bankruptcy Case Dismissed
• Justice Department stays out of Rubashkin Case
• The Daily Docket: Bankruptcy for Detroit?
• Miami Couple Accused of Running Ponzi Scheme
• The Daily Docket: Consumer Bankruptcy Filings on the Rise
• Trump Says Bankruptcy Is Not Part of His Brand

Going Concern

• Ernst & Young Was ‘Comfortable’ with Lehman’s Shady Accounting
• It’s Hard Out There for an Auditor

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Bankruptcy Billables is an overview of bankruptcy-relevant coverage and discussion from various law-related blogs.

Holding a J.D. and an International Affairs M.A. from Marquette University, Matt Leichter (matt [dot] leichter [at] gmail [dot] com) is an attorney licensed in Wisconsin and New York.  He speaks Japanese and focuses on comparative and international law, as well as international business.

Law Shucks

• CEO Blames Lawyers for Company’s Bankruptcy

WSJ Bankruptcy Beat

• Maine Sends Hamstrung Negotiator to FairPoint Talks
• The Daily Docket: Air America Signs Off
• If at First You Don’t Succeed, Open Your Wallet
• Tribune Gets Bonus Jitters as Payday Nears
• The Daily Docket: Bankruptcy for MGM?
• Ex-Football Star Facing Bankruptcy, Foreclosure
• The Daily Docket: W.R. Grace Seeks New Loan
• Bankruptcy Gets Starring Role on Bravo
• The Daily Docket: JAL Launches Restructuring
• Hecker Accused of Concealing Assets from Bankruptcy Court

Creditslips.org

• There May Be More Financially Distressed Small Business Owners Than You Think
• On Break Up Fees
• How Many Bankruptcy Appeals?
• Chapter 11 Costs — Help?
• Life Imitates Art (or at Least My Final Exam)
• Usury and Securitization
• A Special Bankruptcy Court
• Visa Does Not Issue Cards or Extend Credit.

Going Concern

• Who Wants to Buy Nic Cage’s Haunted House?

Above The Law

• Morning Docket: 01.14.10
• Bankruptcy Judge to the Rescue of Poor Old Lady/Law School Grad
• Job of the Week: Bankruptcy Baller

Did we miss a good recent bankruptcy-related post on another blog?  E-mail bill [at] bankruptcybill [dot] us to let us know.

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Note:  If you are viewing this site using Internet Explorer, you may not be able to view items in the sidebar.  Clicking on any page or post will cause sidebar items to appear.

*Click here for previous BAPCPA Man cartoons, or here for all cartoons on the site relating to consumer bankruptcy.

Below are some helpful posts from bankruptcy lawyer blogs on the topics of mortgages, foreclosure, loan modification and the Making Homes Affordable Program.  Go to the BK Lawyer Blogs page on this site to see a full state-by-state list of bankruptcy lawyer blogs.  (And get in touch if you have a blog and don’t see it listed.)

Update 9.10.09: There’s a great piece on NPR about foreclosures and the black-box decision making process regarding loan modifications (“Major Banks Still Grappling with Foreclosure“).  At one point, there’s a clip of reporter Chris Arnold in the Bank of America call center, listening over the shoulder of a call center rep who tells a homeowner they’re not eligible for a loan modification.  Arnold questions the rep and receives a not so satisfying explanation.  The issue is raised with the supervisors and it turns out the homeowner was in fact eligible for a loan modification.  How frequently is this scenario replaying itself?

George Haines, Esq. and David Krieger, Esq. (Haines & Krieger) (Las Vegas, NV)

• Do you qualify for a loan modification?
• Should I intentionally miss mortgage payments to qualify for loan modification?
• Loan Modification: The NOT Making Homes Affordable Program
• Nevada has highest foreclosure rate in the U.S. for 31st straight month
• What’s so great about foreclosure mediation?

Bruce Weiner (Rosenberg Musso & Weiner) – NYBankruptcyNet (Brooklyn, NY)

• Brooklyn Judge gives New York homeowners a fighting chance against foreclosure
• New York foreclosures likely to continue as ARMs begin to re-set over next 4 years
• Can I keep my home if I file for bankruptcy in New York?
• Subprime loan modification companies

Craig D. Robins, Esq. – Long Island Bankruptcy Blog (Woodbury, NY)

• Why I Won’t Negotiate Loan Modifications
• Many New York Foreclosure Suits Are Dismissed Because They Are Defective
• Is a Short Sale a Reasonable Alternative to Foreclosure on Long Island?

Jonathan Ginsberg, Esq. – theBKLaw (Atlanta, GA)

• Loan Modification Myths Busted
• If I Do Not Reaffirm My Mortgage in Chapter 7, Do I Automatically Lose Title to my House?

Reed Allmand, Esq. (Allmand & Lee) – Reed’s Bankruptcy Attorney Blog (Dallas and Ft. Worth, TX)

• Mortgage Modification in Chapter 13 Bankruptcy
• Selling Your Home When You’re Broke
• Congress Passes Anti-Foreclosure Bill

*To see more of Gideon Kendall’s work go to www.gideonkendall.com and gideonkendall.squarespace.com/journal.  Or order yourself a copy of Dino Pets, the wonderfully illustrated children’s book written by Lynn Plourde and illustrated by BAPCPA Man’s favorite illustrator, Gideon Kendall.

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Bankruptcy Billables is an overview of bankruptcy-relevant coverage and discussion from various law-related blogs.

Law Shucks

• links for 2009-08-22 – Mentions Bankruptcy Bill #19 – Law firm raids)
• This Week in Layoffs – 8/21/09
• Reading List for Deal Lawyers – Includes excellent summary of Eat What You Kill by Milt Regan.  (Eat What You Kill is also one of the books in Bankruptcy Bill’s Summer Reading List.)

Point of Law

• Will Number 25 Be The Charm? – S. Todd Brown reviews and analyzes the latest developments in the seemingly endless Congoleum asbestos bankruptcy case.

WSJ Bankruptcy Beat

• Can You Pay My Bills?
• Coyotes Hometown Seeks to Block Gretzky Claim
• Recession Scares Morbid Industries Into Liquidation
• Forget Speidi; Meet Markus and Indrani
• Where’s Schwarzenegger When You Need Him?
• Lucky Dog: Dykstra Values Pooch at $10,000

Creditslips.org

Going Concern

• Preliminary Analytics | 08.26.09 – Madoff & JP Morgan; Colonial Bank-ruptcy; U.S. Postal Service job cuts

Above The Law

• All the News That’s Fit to Recycle (NYT reports: ‘Legal job market is hard!’)
• How to Avoid Getting Fired (very funny video)
• Fall Recruiting Open Thread: Vault 6-10 (2010)
• The Mainstream Media Is Aware That Law Firms Exist, Right? – Commentary on the lack of media attention for the role that law firms played in enabling the global financial crisis.

Bankruptcy Billables is an overview of bankruptcy-relevant coverage and discussion from various law-related blogs.

Point of Law

• Cramdown still lurking
• Systemic Indifference (S. Todd Brown comments on reckless and indifferent collection practices of mortgage companies cited in a Huffington Post piece by Karen Weise.  Ties commentary into accuracy of claims process in bankruptcy cases, particularly asbestos cases.)

WSJ Bankruptcy Beat

• Lawyer aims to bring “Fiegenomics” to Washington (Bankruptcy lawyer Tom Fiegen to challenge Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley for his seat.)

Creditslips.org

• Thanks to Max
• Private Tax Collection
• The Lack of Evidentiary Foundations Fosters Fraud
• Show Me the Original Note and I Will Show You the Money
• The Alphabet Problem and the Pooling and Servicing Agreements
• Does a Tarnished Credit Report Equal an Untrustworthy Employee?
• How Much Credit Card Debt Do Bankrupt Consumers Have?
• What Does RESPA Have to do with Consumer Bankruptcy Cases?
• Countrywide Sanctioned by Ohio Court Citing Porter & Twomey
• HAMP–Is It Really All About the Money?
• The Consumer Financial Protection Agency
• Truth in Lending or Truth in Ownership of Residential Mortgage Notes
• The Problem with Houston
• Greetings to Max Gardner
• Remote Deposit Capture (RDC) iPhone App

Going Concern

• Huron Consulting Beats the Numbers, Cooked Books and a Bunch of Other Shadiness Notwithstanding
• Bank Failures by the Numbers
• Hammer Wants Everyone to Know That the IRS Can’t Touch This

Above The Law

• $40 Million Benchslap for Weil Gotshal (relates to IP and litigation, but anything about Weil Gotshal is bankruptcy relevant from Bankruptcy Bill’s perspective)
• How Well-Endowed Is Bernie Madoff?
• Official New Vault Rankings (Weil Gotshal moves up to #6)
• Morning Docket 08.18.09 (Why has there been no litigation surge in the recession?)
• Non-Sequiturs: 08.17.09 (Link to another legal cartoon site:  Courtoons–Daily Legal Cartoons.  By David Mills)
• Bad News for the Brothers Madoff?
• Morning Docket 08.17.09 (Programmers figure out a way to hack PACER to be able to access public court docs without having to pay for them.)

NYLawyer.com (free registration required)

• Laughing All the Way to the Bankruptcy: NY Firm Passes $100 Million in Fees in Lehman Disaster
• Zombie Firm Loses Bid to Set Aside NY Default Judgment

Law Shucks

• Layoffs in the Vault 25
• This Week in Layoffs – 8/14/09

Did we miss a good recent bankruptcy-related post on another blog?  E-mail bill [at] bankruptcybill [dot] us to let us know.

Bankruptcy Bill isn’t the only one into haiku these days.  NPR’s Planet Money has collected a bunch of good ones from its readers here:  http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2009/05/our_favorite_recession_haiku.html