Geoffrey A Heaton

June 24, 2024 | The Legal Intelligencer

In a recent published decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit addressed a previously unresolved question in that circuit: whether a debtor's failure to properly schedule a debt in an "asset case" renders the debt nondischargeable.

By Lawrence J. Kotler and Geoffrey A. Heaton

7 minute read

March 27, 2023 | The Legal Intelligencer

In a recently published decision, In re Masingale, 644 B.R. 530 (9th Cir. BAP 2022), the U.S. Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (the BAP) held that in the absence of a timely objection, debtors who claimed a homestead exemption of "100% of FMV" in their residence had a valid exemption claim for the full fair market value of the property, including post-petition appreciation.

By Lawrence J. Kotler and Geoffrey A. Heaton

8 minute read

May 20, 2021 | The Legal Intelligencer

In a recently published decision, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina held that a creditor violated both the automatic stay and discharge injunction when the creditor made a criminal referral against a debtor on account of a bounced rent check.

By Rudolph J. Di Massa Jr. and Geoffrey A. Heaton

8 minute read

August 13, 2020 | The Legal Intelligencer

In a recent decision, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York held that claim disallowance issues under Section 502(d) of the Bankruptcy Code "travel with" the claim, and not with the claimant.

By Rudolph J. Di Massa, Jr. and Geoffrey A. Heaton

8 minute read

December 26, 2019 | The Legal Intelligencer

In a bankruptcy case filed 91 years ago (and reopened 85 years later), the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Virginia recently denied creditors' counsel's motion for a fee enhancement under the "common fund doctrine," finding it could not award the requested fees absent statutory authority.

By Rudolph J. Di Massa, Jr. and Geoffrey A. Heaton

8 minute read

June 28, 2019 | The Legal Intelligencer

In a published decision from the General Motors bankruptcy case, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York held that a creditor holding a contingent, unsecured claim that received proper notice of the claims bar date did not establish “excusable neglect” to permit it to file a proof of claim some nine years after the bar date passed.

By Rudolph J. Di Massa, Jr. and Geoffrey A. Heaton

8 minute read