Number of US households rated 'economically insecure' hits record high

A record 1 in 5 U.S. households saw their available household income decline by 25 percent or more from one year to the next from 2008 through 2010.



Read more: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2011/12/01/131863/number-of-us-households-rated.html#ixzz1ffjhu400

Supreme Court hears arguments on Chapter 12 bankruptcy, insider trading

http://jurist.org/paperchase/2011/11/supreme-court-hears-arguments-on-farm-bankruptcy-insider-trading.php

Case Update

Sikes v. Crager,


2011 WL 4591889 (W. D. La, Sept. 30, 2011) (Hicks)

A Chapter 13 plan proposing to pay only attorney’s fees and with little or no meaningful distribution to creditors is a plan not proposed in good faith.

Kindle and ePub Versions of Bankruptcy Code

http://www.creditslips.org/creditslips/2011/11/kindle-and-epub-versions-of-bankruptcy-code.html

University of Illinois College of Law bankruptcy professor Robert Lawless and his research assistant, Scott Cromar, have created electronic versions of the Bankruptcy Code and Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure.

IMPLEMENTATION OF CHANGES TO BANKRUPTCY RULES 3001(c) and 3002.1 WEBINAR till 12/9/11

http://considerchapter13.org/implementation-of-changes-to-bankruptcy-rules-3001c-and-3002-1-webinar/

HOPE Hotline

Applying for a modification through HAMP is free, and homeowners interested in pursuing a modification can call the Homeowner’s HOPE Hotline at 1.888.995.HOPE for more information and to make sure they receive help from a legitimate source.

GMAC stops buuying homes in MASS

Ally Financial Inc.'s GMAC Mortgage unit stopped buying home loans in Massachusetts after the state accused the five biggest mortgage lenders of conducting illegal foreclosures, Bloomberg News reported. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/print/2011-12-02/ally-financial-will-halt-mortgage-purchases-in-massachusetts-after-lawsuit.html http://www.dsnews.com/articles/gmac-counters-lawsuit-with-decision-to-pull-lending-in-massachusetts-2011-12-02

Bankruptcy Filings Down

U.S. consumer bankruptcy filings totaled 100,980 nationwide during November, a 12 percent decrease from the 114,587 total consumer filings recorded in November 2010. NBKRC.com Chapter 13 filings constituted 31 percent of all consumer cases in November, a slight decrease from October.

Changes to Federal Court Rules Take Effect

Amendments to the Federal Rules of Appellate, Bankruptcy, Criminal Procedure, and Evidence took effect December 1, 2011.

Congress took no action after the changes were approved by Supreme Court more than seven months earlier. That means new amendments to these rules are now in effect:

• Appellate Rules 4 and 40

• Bankruptcy Rules 2003, 2019, 3001, 4004, and 6003.

• Criminal Rules 1, 3, 4, 6, 9, 32, 40, 41, 43, and 49.

• Evidence Rules 101-1103.

In addition, new Bankruptcy Rules 1004.2 and 3002.1 are in effect, as well as new Criminal Rule 4.1.

The text of the amended rules and extensive supporting documents is available.

of interst

http://www.lawjobs.com/newsandviews/LawArticle.jsp?hubtype=Tips&id=1202534160808&et=editorial&bu=Law.com&cn=Law.com%20Newswire%20-%20Dec.%202%2C%202011&src=EMC-Email&pt=LAWCOM%20Newswire&kw=Tread%20Lightly%20With%20Footnotes&slreturn=1




First United Security Bank v Garner (11th Circuit 2011)

The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the District Court and Bankruptcy Court's holding that "an over secured creditor is only entitled to the contract rate of interest [on its allowed secured claim], pursuant to 11 U.S.C. §506(b), from the date of the filing until confirmation of the bankruptcy plan" in a chapter 13 case, where the debtor invokes the cram down provision of 11 U.S.C. §1325(a)(5)(B).
http://volo.abi.org/first-united-security-bank-v-garner-in-re-garner?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+volo%2Frss+%28ABI+Volo+Project%3A+RSS+Feed%29

State Court Budget Shortfalls

Results of the survey, issued by the National Center for State Courts and released on Nov. 29, indicate widespread recent budget cuts — and the public at large is going to feel the impact. A survey issued by the National Center for State Courts warns of the public impact of recent cuts, including 42 states with substantial court budget decreases; 39 states where clerk vacancies were not filled; 34 states where court staff were laid off; and 23 states with reduced court operating hours. Said one analyst: "It can't get a whole lot worse."



http://www.ncsc.org/Information-and-Resources/Budget-Resource-Center/States-activities-map/.aspx


http://www.ncsc.org/Information-and-Resources/Budget-Resource-Center/States-activities-map/Florida.aspx

SIGTARP

The Office of the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program announced the arrests of three top officers of a California real estate company who took thousands of dollars in up-front loan modification fees and made false promises to lower the mortgage payments of struggling homeowners.


NEWS RELEASE:

http://www.sigtarp.gov/press/2011/Legacy_Home_Loans_Arrests_Press_Release.pdf



SIGTARP HOTLINE:

To report allegations of fraud, waste, abuse, mismanagement, or misrepresentations involving the taxpayer-funded Troubled Asset Relief Program, call (877) SIG-2009 or send confidential information to SIGTARP via an online Hotline form.



GENERAL COMMENTS:

To offer comments or suggestions to SIGTARP, please use one of the following methods:

Phone: (202) 622-1419

Fax: (202) 622-4559

Mail: Office of the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program

1801 L Street NW

Washington, D.C. 20020

NEW Bankruptcy Forms Effective 12/1/11

For your convenience, below are links that provide information concerning these changes. A brief summary of the amendments to the Bankruptcy Rules and forms may be found at the Court's website at:


http://www.flmb.uscourts.gov/announcements/


Other Links:

Link to Amendments to Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure:

http://www.flmb.uscourts.gov/announcements/documents/amendments_2011.pdf


Link to Information Regarding Supreme Court Approved Rule Amendments (April 26, 2011):

http://www.uscourts.gov/RulesAndPolicies/FederalRulemaking/PendingRules/SupremeCourt042611.aspx


Link to Pending Changes in the Bankruptcy Forms:

http://www.uscourts.gov/FormsAndFees/Forms/BankruptcyForms/BankruptcyFormsPendingChanges.aspx

Massachusetts Sues Wells & MERS

JPMorgan Chase & Co., Bank of America Corp. and Citigroup Inc. were among five banks sued by Massachusetts for allegedly conducting unlawful foreclosures and deceiving homeowners, Bloomberg News reported yesterday. Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley filed the lawsuit yesterday against the three banks, as well as Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC) and Ally Financial Inc., accusing the banks of engaging in unfair and deceptive trade practices in violation of state law. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/print/2011-12-01/ma-sues-bofa-citi-jpmorgan-ally-wells-fargo.html and MERS


http://www.dsnews.com/articles/massachusetts-sues-five-largest-servicers-and-mers-2011-12-01


MASS Complaint

http://www.mass.gov/ago/docs/press/ag-complaint-national-banks.pdf

Unemployment Rate Drops to 8.6%

The nation’s unemployment rate fell to 8.6 percent during the month of November, as employers added 120,000 new jobs to their payrolls, the U.S. Department of Labor said Friday morning. By the government’s calculations, the unemployment rate declined by 0.4 percentage point from 9.0 percent reported in October to hit its lowest level since March of 2009. Employment assessments for both October and September were revised upward.