Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 5 of 5
Full-Text Articles in Law
Forward: Symposium On Interdisciplinary Perspectives On Bankruptcy Reform, Michelle A. Cecil
Forward: Symposium On Interdisciplinary Perspectives On Bankruptcy Reform, Michelle A. Cecil
Faculty Publications
In 2003, over 1.6 million consumers filed for bankruptcy protection, surpassing the previous record of 1.5 million bankruptcy filings set just one year earlier. In an effort to reverse the spiraling upward trend of consumer bankruptcies, and to prevent abusive debtors from using the bankruptcy system to avoid paying their debts, in April, 2005, Congress voted overwhelmingly in favor of passing the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 (BAPCPA). Widely heralded as the most sweeping bankruptcy reform legislation in over a quarter of a century, BAPCPA was designed in large part to force debtors with the ability …
Bankruptcy Reform: What's Tax Got To Do With It?, Michelle A. Cecil
Bankruptcy Reform: What's Tax Got To Do With It?, Michelle A. Cecil
Faculty Publications
The article takes a two-pronged approach to the issue. First, it argues that all post-petition appreciation should be taxed to the debtor rather than to the debtor's bankruptcy estate because the debtor enjoys the benefits of the asset's appreciation in value and because, from a tax perspective, the results will be identical irrespective of whether the debtor or the bankruptcy estate is taxed on the asset's post-petition appreciation. Second, the article proposes that the gain accruing before the termination of the bankruptcy proceeding be treated as discharge of indebtedness income so that the debtor can defer recognition of the gain …
Debtor Discharge And Creditor Repayment In Chapter 13, Scott F. Norberg, Andrew Velkey
Debtor Discharge And Creditor Repayment In Chapter 13, Scott F. Norberg, Andrew Velkey
Faculty Publications
Consumer bankruptcy filings hit another record high in 1998, with nearly 1.4 million consumers filing for bankruptcy relief. This trend sparked a debate in Congress about means-testing chapter 7 bankruptcy filings. Proponents of reform argued that it would curtail fraud and abuse. Opponents believed that consumer debt was swamping income growth, and that the deregulation of the consumer credit market had led to overgenerous lending and hence to more bankruptcies. This is an empirical study of whether filers for chapter 13 bankruptcy cases are abusing the system, or whether debtors are truly being swamped by debt in excess of their …
Legislative Messaging And Bankruptcy Law, Lois R. Lupica, Karen Gross, Kathryn R. Heidt
Legislative Messaging And Bankruptcy Law, Lois R. Lupica, Karen Gross, Kathryn R. Heidt
Faculty Publications
This Essay grew out of many three-way conversations and multiple collaborative drafts. We began this conversation at the academic conference in 2003 celebrating the Bankruptcy Code’s upcoming 25th Anniversary. Sadly, we did not have the opportunity to finish either the conversations or to finalize this Essay before Kate Heidt’s untimely death in May 2005. Completed in her absence, this Essay is dedicated to the memory of our close friend and colleague, Professor Kathryn R. Heidt.
Bankruptcy And State Collections: The Case Of The Missing Garnishments, Richard M. Hynes
Bankruptcy And State Collections: The Case Of The Missing Garnishments, Richard M. Hynes
Faculty Publications
Recent bankruptcy reforms were spurred in part by a bankruptcy filing rate that has more than doubled in the last ten years and that has risen by approximately six hundred percent over the last generation. Some attribute this surge in filings to Americans' greater willingness to avoid debts by declaring bankruptcy. Most academics, however, argue that more Americans are forced into bankruptcy by crushing debt burdens and aggressive collections techniques. Surprisingly, the literature has largely ignored data on the use of these collections techniques. This Article examines the use of one of the most important collections tools, garnishment, in two …