The Ninth Circuit is poised to address a set of important issues at the intersection of Chapter 13 practice and discharge enforcement in Valdellon v. Wells Fargo. The appeal challenges how § 524(i) applies when a mortgage servicer fails to honor the cure-and-maintain structure of a confirmed Chapter 13 plan and asks whether emotional-distress damages remain available as a contempt remedy after Taggart v. Lorenzen. The outcome will directly affect the reliability of Notices of Final Cure, the finality of the discharge order, and the remedies available to protect debtors from unlawful post-discharge collection efforts.
[Read more…] about Ninth Circuit to Address Scope of § 524(i) and Discharge Remedies in Valdellon v. Wells FargoMichigan Court of Appeals Orders Presentation of Passed Bills, Including Critical Bankruptcy-Exemption Modernization Measure
In a significant constitutional and consumer-protection decision, the Michigan Court of Appeals held that nine bills duly enacted by both chambers of the Legislature—including HB 4901, the long-awaited modernization of Michigan’s bankruptcy exemptions—must be presented to the Governor for consideration. The opinion, released October 27, 2025, reverses the Court of Claims and directs issuance of a writ of mandamus compelling presentment.
[Read more…] about Michigan Court of Appeals Orders Presentation of Passed Bills, Including Critical Bankruptcy-Exemption Modernization Measure5th Circuit Holds That The 30-Day Window To Object to Exemptions in Rule 4003(b)(1) Can Be Waived
In Langston v. Dallas Commodity Company, No. 24-10883 (5th Cir. Nov. 17, 2025), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit addressed a recurring challenge in consumer bankruptcy practice: what happens when a trustee fails to properly continue a Section 341 meeting of creditors under Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 2003(e)? While the court affirmed that such procedural failures do not automatically trigger a bright-line rule concluding the meeting, it established important precedent distinguishing between cases where another meeting is actually held versus cases where no further meeting occurs. Most significantly for practitioners, the decision underscores how easily debtors can waive the protections of the 30-day deadline to object to exemptions under Rule 4003(b)(1)—and provides a roadmap for avoiding such waivers.
[Read more…] about 5th Circuit Holds That The 30-Day Window To Object to Exemptions in Rule 4003(b)(1) Can Be WaivedNinth Circuit Holds Debtor’s Post-Claim Deadline Plan Amendments Do Not Salvage a Late Claim – Duarte v. Hillard
Holding. In Duarte, No. 24-5156, 2025 LX 413952 (9th Cir. Oct. 23, 2025), the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the disallowance of a creditor’s untimely proof of claim. The ruling reinforces strict adherence to the filing deadlines under the Bankruptcy Code and underscores that post-bar-date actions by a debtor do not substitute for a timely proof of claim under Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 3004.
[Read more…] about Ninth Circuit Holds Debtor’s Post-Claim Deadline Plan Amendments Do Not Salvage a Late Claim – Duarte v. HillardNinth Circuit Rejects Claim Preclusion in Successive Exemption Claims
In a major win for consumer debtors and the attorneys who represent them, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has reversed the District Court’s ruling in Warfield v. Nance, reaffirming that debtors may amend their bankruptcy exemptions even after earlier claims have been denied. The decision safeguards the principle that exemptions must be liberally construed in favor of debtors and upholds the right to a genuine “fresh start.”
[Read more…] about Ninth Circuit Rejects Claim Preclusion in Successive Exemption ClaimsNCBRC and Allies File Amicus Brief in Romero Appeal on Tax Purchaser Interest Rates
On August 20, 2025, the National Consumer Bankruptcy Rights Center (NCBRC), together with Legal Aid Chicago, filed an amicus curiae brief in the Seventh Circuit in support of debtor–appellant Bernardo Romero. The case raises a recurring and important issue for homeowners who seek Chapter 13 relief to save their homes from tax purchasers.
[Read more…] about NCBRC and Allies File Amicus Brief in Romero Appeal on Tax Purchaser Interest RatesTenth Circuit Affirms Exemption of Child Tax Credit Refunds in Garcia-Morales
In Cohen v. Garcia-Morales, No. 24-1384 (10th Cir. Aug. 19, 2025), the Tenth Circuit addressed whether a Chapter 7 debtor’s federal tax refund, traceable to a refundable child tax credit, must be turned over to the bankruptcy trustee. Affirming both the bankruptcy and district courts, the panel held that the refund was wholly exempt under Colorado law.
[Read more…] about Tenth Circuit Affirms Exemption of Child Tax Credit Refunds in Garcia-MoralesEleventh Circuit Upholds the Bankruptcy Court’s Discretion to Deny Trustee’s Plan Modification Based on Postpetition PI Proceeds
In Conte v. Hill, No. 24-10264, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed a bankruptcy court’s order denying a Chapter 13 trustee’s motion to modify two confirmed plans to require turnover of post-confirmation personal injury settlement proceeds. The injuries in both cases occurred post-petition. The Eleventh Circuit affirmed that plan modification remains a discretionary determination for the bankruptcy court.
[Read more…] about Eleventh Circuit Upholds the Bankruptcy Court’s Discretion to Deny Trustee’s Plan Modification Based on Postpetition PI ProceedsEighth Circuit Ducks Issue Whether Defensive Appellate Rights Are Estate Property, but Highlights Necessity of Staying an Order Granting Sale
July 31, 2025 — In Humphrey v. Christopher, No. 24-1854, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit sidestepped a key question in consumer bankruptcy law: whether a debtor’s defensive appellate rights are part of the bankruptcy estate and may be sold by the trustee. Instead, the court resolved the case on procedural grounds, holding that because the debtor failed to obtain a stay of the bankruptcy court’s sale order, review of that order was statutorily moot under 11 U.S.C. § 363(m). While declining to reach the merits, the decision underscores the critical importance of seeking a stay pending appeal when challenging sales of purported estate assets.
[Read more…] about Eighth Circuit Ducks Issue Whether Defensive Appellate Rights Are Estate Property, but Highlights Necessity of Staying an Order Granting SaleNCBRC and NACBA Urge Second Circuit to Preserve Bankruptcy Court Jurisdiction Over Tax Dischargeability
July 31, 2025 — The National Consumer Bankruptcy Rights Center (NCBRC) and the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys (NACBA) filed an amicus brief in the Second Circuit in In re Goebel, No. 25-103, in support of a Chapter 7 debtor seeking a determination that over $500,000 in tax debts owed to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) were discharged in bankruptcy. The amici urge the court to reject the IRS’s efforts to restrict the bankruptcy court’s ability to determine tax dischargeability and to reaffirm the rights of debtors to obtain a timely and final ruling on the scope of their discharge.
[Read more…] about NCBRC and NACBA Urge Second Circuit to Preserve Bankruptcy Court Jurisdiction Over Tax Dischargeability