By Alfred Villoch, III, with Savage, Combs & Villoch, PLLC In a previous blog post, I explained the purpose of a 341 meeting of creditors. A trustee holds a 341 meeting in every bankruptcy case. You can access that blog post HERE. Before a 341 meeting, a bankruptcy trustee usually…
By Alfred Villoch, III, Esquire, with Savage, Combs & Villoch, PLLC The judges of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida are considering new rules and proposed amendments to the Local Rules. The proposals are available HERE for public comment beginning on March 9, 2015. The public comment…
By Alfred Villoch, III, with Savage, Combs & Villoch, PLLC Only an individual (not businesses) with regular income can seek relief under Chapter 13 of the Bankruptcy Code. Chapter 13 allows individuals with regular income to propose a plan to repay all or part of their debts. Under Chapter 13, individuals file a proposed repayment…
By Alfred Villoch, III, Esquire, with Savage, Combs, & Villoch, PLLC No. An employer is strictly prohibited from terminating your employment or discriminating against you in any way solely because you filed bankruptcy. Section 525 of the Bankruptcy Code is entitled “Protection against discriminatory treatment.” Subsection (b) specifically states that…
By Alfred Villoch, III, with Savage, Combs & Villoch, PLLC Contrary to pop culture belief, bankruptcy existed long before the game show Wheel of Fortune. Remember when contestants would lose their prize money if they spun the wheel and randomly landed on the ominous black wedge, “BANKRUPTCY”? Bankruptcy also existed…
By Alfred Villoch, III, with Savage, Combs & Villoch, PLLC On November 12, 2014, the New York Times published an article entitled “Debts canceled by bankruptcy still mar consumer credit scores.” In the article, the author, Jessica Silver-Greenberg, explains that “Tens of thousands of Americans who went through bankruptcy are…
By Alfred Villoch, III, Esquire, with Savage, Combs & Villoch, PLLC On November 17, 2014, the United States Supreme Court granted a petition for writ of certiorari in two cases: Bank of America, N.A. v. Caulkett (In re Caulkett), 566 Fed. Appx. 879, 2014 U.S. App. LEXIS 9407 (11th Cir. Fla.,…
By Alfred Villoch, III, with Savage, Combs & Villoch, PLLC If you miss car payments, the company that loaned you the money to purchase the car can likely take back your car in what is called “repossession.” The right to take back your car for nonpayment usually comes from the…
By Alfred Villoch, III, with Savage, Combs & Villoch, PLLC Johnny Smith accidentally runs a red traffic light and slams his pick-up truck into a motorcyclist, Drew Lenders. Sadly, Drew was not wearing a helmet and suffered significant head trauma and memory loss. Drew’s hospital bill alone is $50,000 He…
By Alfred Villoch, III, Esquire, with Savage, Combs & Villoch, PLLC Consumer bankruptcy filings are down 12 percent so far in 2014, according to Epiq Systems, Inc., and as reported by the American Bankruptcy Institute. See “Bankruptcy Filings Through First Three Quarters of 2014 Fall 12 Percent from 2013, Commercial…