The Absolute Priority Rule is an arcane part of the Bankruptcy Code (see 11 USC § 1129(b)(2)(B)(ii)). It says that, in a Chapter 11 plan, lower classes of creditors cannot be paid anything unless higher classes have either been paid in full Read more >>
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Tax Debt Lowered from $513,000 to $30,000!
“Impossible,” you’re probably thinking. But it’s not. Here’s why. My client knew he had $200,000 in tax debt, only $30,000 of which was income tax debt; the remaining $170,000 was Read more »
Lenny Dykstra Sentenced for Bankruptcy Fraud
He had a great mansion in Lake Sherwood, near Thousand Oaks, but when his financial-services firm fell apart, so did his life. Baseball legend Lenny Dykstra, who went through bankruptcy in 2009 (claiming about $25 million in assets and $37 million in debts), thought he could hide assets Read more >>
Not Even Lindsay Lohan Can Hide From the IRS – Nor Can You
Lohan’s Tax Troubles The IRS has seized Lindsay Lohan’s bank accounts. It appears that she owes about $233,000 in back taxes. Her buddy Charlie Sheen, who knows something about becoming a public train wreck, gifted Read more »
Why Hiding Information In Bankruptcy Isn’t Good Strategy
Attorneys often try to hide a client’s information, disclosing as little as possible. This legal strategy sometimes has comical effects, as in this exchange I heard in a deposition:Read more >>
Filing Bankruptcy If Debtor No Longer Lives in US
I had an American client who lived in Europe – Luxembourg, of all places. He moved because his business ventures in the US were going bad. His wife was from Luxembourg, so the family moved close to his in-laws Read more >>
Why We’ll Never See Tax Reform
I’ve always maintained that Congress will never reform the Tax Code toward simplicity. Here is a scholarly article that says just that: the power to tax, and to keep changes Read more »
The Rule of Law
Here is an op-ed article that describes why I like being a lawyer . I like civilization. I like having a house, a car, access to food, a circle of friends, and the daily expectation that this unlikely to go away soon. I Read more »
Bankruptcy & Self-Employed People
Self-employed persons face special challenges in filing bankruptcy. When I hear that a potential debtor has a business, a slew of questions come up: is the business incorporated, a partnership, or a sole proprietorship? Does the debtor Read more >>
Fighting A Bankruptcy Discharge: Tenant Who Wanted Her Rent Back
My client was a landlady who rented her three-unit house not far from the beach in Ventura. The county came by one day and put yellow tags on two of the units, calling them “substandard” and evicting the tenants that day. Why “substandard?” Mostly because the area was zoned for one unit only Read more >>