Maryland Bankruptcy Blog » Maryland Bankruptcy

Maryland Foreclosure “Moratorium” to Expire Soon

Brett Weiss, Esq. — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 13:13:25 +0000

When Governor O’Malley signed into law changes to Maryland’s foreclosure laws effective on April 4, 2008, new foreclosure filings stopped. Although the new law’s changes were, in most instances, more cosmetic than substance (see my article on the Mortgage Law Network, “Changes to Maryland Foreclosure Law: Steak or Sizzle?“) they contained provisions that resulted in an effective moratorium, or halt, in foreclosures.

This is primarily because of required new forms that have to be adopted by the State, and without which, the foreclosure cannot comply with the technical requirements of the new law. The forms should be issued in early July, and the floodgates will open. Three months worth of foreclosures will be filed at once, with auctions likely scheduled in early September.

Thousands of new cases are likely to be filed, so if you’ve fallen behind on your mortgage, now is the time to examine your options, before the rush hits.

Brett Weiss Quoted in “Washington Business Journal” on Chapter 11 Business Bankruptcy

Brett Weiss, Esq. — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 18:34:17 +0000

Brett Weiss was quoted in the January 25, 2008 issue of the Washington Business Journal in connection with the recent bankruptcy filing of one of his Chapter 11 developer clients. Weiss was quoted as saying, “We all know that the current housing market is lousy. And this is making things hard for a lot of good folks.”

The full article may be found on the Washington Business Journal website.

Maryland Foreclosure Taskforce Issues Report

Brett Weiss, Esq. — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 21:23:24 +0000

While traditionally, Maryland has not been the most homeowner-friendly state in terms of its foreclosure procedures, things have gotten far worse with the deepening of the mortgage crisis. According to State officials, Maryland has jumped from No. 40 to No 15 in foreclosures nationally. A recent article in The Washington Post summarizes the recommendations of the Maryland Homeownership Preservation Task Force. (I haven’t been able to read the full report yet, and my comments below are based on the Post’s summary. If it proves that the summary is wrong or incomplete, I’ll revise this blog.)

It’s always nice to look as if you’re doing something in response to a problem. It’s even nicer to actually do something. Unfortunately, the task force’s recommendations sound a lot more like window dressing than actual improvements in the current foreclosure system in Maryland.

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Brett Weiss Files Amicus Brief for National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys (NACBA)

Brett Weiss, Esq. — Sat, 03 Nov 2007 20:03:12 +0000

Brett Weiss has filed an amicus brief on behalf of NACBA, in a case before the Maryland Bankruptcy Court, In re Bellamy, Case No. 07-11332, The brief argues that debtor’s counsel’s fees must be paid as a priority administrative expense, before claims of secured and unsecured creditors; concurrent payment is not allowed. A copy of the brief is available at http://www.nacba.org/?r=38-63cee9397c2b.

“Why Do You Need All This Information?”

Brett Weiss, Esq. — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 12:55:03 +0000

My friend, California State Bankruptcy Attorney Cathy Moran, wrote a recent blog titled, “To Tell the Truth,” talking about the information that is now required from clients to file under the new bankruptcy law (BAPCPA).

Cathy correctly notes that, “Calling for gobs of only marginally relevant information was one strategy that creditors included in the bankruptcy “reform” legislation to deter people who needed bankruptcy relief from getting it. They claimed it was to deter fraud; in reality, they counted on the debt ridden to be disorganized, stressed, and discouraged.”

Many people thinking about bankruptcy are indeed stressed and discouraged. Asking them to try and find information that, even if available, is likely to be irrelevant to their case, just adds to their discomfort and confusion. (My favorite is the question asking whether the filer “owns or has possession of any property that poses or is alleged to pose a threat of imminent and identifiable harm to public health or safety.” Asking this question usually results in the response, “Huh?”) But the name of the game here is “Disclosure, Disclosure, Disclosure.” Disclosure, even of irrelevant but required information, serves a number of purposes:

It’s required by the law.
It shows that you have nothing to hide and makes you look truthful.
It makes the Trustees less likely to dig at the Meeting of Creditors.
It helps your lawyer be informed—and things you don’t think are important may be. What your lawyer doesn’t know CAN (and probably WILL) hurt you.

In short, the more detail you provide your lawyer, the better and more smoothly your case is likely to go.

How Can I Qualify for a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy?

Brett Weiss, Esq. — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 21:56:28 +0000

Just about everyone, regardless of how much debt they have, can qualify for Chapter 7 bankruptcy (so long as they are eligible under the Means Test). But Chapter 13 bankruptcy is different. In a Chapter 13 case, you have to owe less than a certain amount of debt to qualify.

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Changes to Maryland’s Chapter 13 Local Rules and Form Plan

Brett Weiss, Esq. — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 22:49:37 +0000

On October 19, 2007, the Bankruptcy Court announced changes to Local Rules applying to Chapter 13 cases and to the form Chapter 13 Plan. These changes take effect on November 1, 2007, and are fairly significant. (The new/changed language is in italics):

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Medical Bankruptcy

Brett Weiss, Esq. — Sun, 07 Oct 2007 23:57:07 +0000

I am often told by potential clients that they want to file a “medical bankruptcy.” Is there such a special type of bankruptcy designed to deal only with medical debts? No. But a recent blog I posted to the Bankruptcy Law Network discusses how someone with crushing medical bills can file for bankruptcy relief while, in most cases, keeping everything they have—their home, their car and their retirement.

Read “Can I File a ‘Medical Bankruptcy’?”

New Decision On Bankruptcy for People Living Outside the United States

Brett Weiss, Esq. — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 00:21:00 +0000

The Honorable Nancy V. Alquist, a Judge on the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Maryland, entered a ruling on September 28, 2007 in an important case I argued, In re Baker. This case deals with international bankruptcy at the individual level—it lets people living outside the United States file for bankruptcy in the United States to discharge their U.S. debt. A copy of her opinion may be found by clicking on this link.

The debtor in this case is a U.S. citizen, and moved overseas several years ago. At the time he moved, he owed balances to a number of U.S. credit cards. It used to be that if you incurred a debt in the United States and then moved to foreign country, it didn’t make sense for the creditor to look for you.

Things have changed.

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Bankruptcy Filings in Maryland Up By 42%

Brett Weiss, Esq. — Sun, 19 Aug 2007 04:18:18 +0000

Bankruptcies filed during the first six months of 2007 were up 48 percent over the same period in 2006, according to data released on August 16 by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts. Total filings were 404,090 during the first six months of 2007 compared to 272,604 cases filed over the same period in 2006.

Maryland cases showed a similar increase, rising from 4,395 during the first six months of 2006 to 6,221 during the first six months 0f 2007, an increase of 42%.