Illinois Bankruptcy Lawyer Blog

The housing industry, caught in a maelstrom of sinking demand, rising foreclosures, and bulging inventories, is in its worst slump in decades, a growing body of economic evidence shows.

The New York Times

Sales of new homes fell last year by 26 percent, the steepest drop since records began in 1963, the Commerce Department said on Monday.

Last week, the National Association of Realtors reported that sales of previously owned single-family homes, a large portion of the overall housing market, suffered their biggest annual drop in 25 years. And the median price of those homes fell for the first time in at least four decades, and possibly since the Great Depression.

Still trying too turn a "Blind Eye".

The scary part of this story, if you know a property is under valued and ROI is not on the horizon, would it not just scare the heck out of you knowing you just traveled through entire villages of vacant homes.

The North Carolina prosecutor notorious for the overzealous prosecution of 3 LaCross players from Duke University, Michael B. Nifong, filed for bankrukptcy protection January 15 in the Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of North Carolina (Durham). See In re Michael B. Nifong, 08-80034

Read the whole sordid story here.

Bankruptcy: In re Walter Irmen, 07 B 03103

Adversary: Neiman v. Irmen, 07 A 00404

Opinion Issued: December 7, 2007

Judge: Jack B. Schmetterer

Read and download opinion in PDF format here.

Bankruptcy: In re Michelle Johnson, 07 B 01853

Opinion Issued: December 5, 2007

Judge: John H. Squires

Read and download opinion in PDF format here.

Bankruptcy: In re Mission Bay, 07 B 20870

Adversary: William W. Linnemann et al., 07 A 1045

Judgment Issued: December 14, 2007

Judge: A. Benjamin Goldgar

Read and download opinion in PDF format here.

Bankruptcy: In re Mervyn C. Phillips, Jr., 06 B 04158

Adversary: David Brown v. Phillips, et al., 06 A 01180

Judgment Issued: December 17, 2007

Judge: John H. Squires

Read and download opinion in PDF format here.

Bankruptcy: James A. Redmond, 96 B 03162

Opinion Issued: JDecember 20, 2007

Judge: Eugene Wedoff

Read and download opinion in PDF format here.

1^st cir

Lee-Barnes v. Puerto Ven Quarry Corp., No. 06-2581

In a suit to recover investments after failed business dealings, an appeal of an order nullifying a prejudgment surety bond after the poster declared bankruptcy is dismissed where: 1) the district court's Rule 54(b) certification of the order constituted an abuse of discretion since the order failed to meet either Rule 54(b)'s "party" or "claim" requirement; and 2) the bond issue did not rise to the level of importance needed for recognition under the collateral-order doctrine.

9^th cir

United Steelworkers v. Retirement Income Plan, No. 05-16833, 06-15862

In a union and retirees' action against the owner and operator of a copper smelter plant's retirement plan seeking to compel arbitration of retirees' benefits claims, summary judgment for plaintiffs, denial of defendant's motion to stay, and an award of attorney's fees is affirmed in part and remanded where: 1) the presumption of arbitrability applies in this case; 2) consequently, the district court did not err in granting summary judgment for the union, as the union's interpretation of the relevant plan documents is at least a reasonable interpretation of the relevant language; 3) a request for arbitration was not untimely; 4) retirees are not excluded from the arbitration procedure; 5) neither the judicial estoppel nor the law of the case doctrines apply to bar the union from opposing defendant's motion to stay; and 6) the fees award was not an abuse of discretion. The matter is remanded for further proceedings on what effect an automatic bankruptcy stay has on the fees awa! rd against the employer.

10^th cir

In re: Warren, No. 06-4278

In a Chapter 7 bankruptcy case, a decision denying debtors a discharge is affirmed where, on the record before it, the bankruptcy court could properly find that debtors had engaged in a variety of unreported or otherwise deceitful transactions whose overriding purpose was to prevent plaintiffs from recovering any money from the debtors' bankruptcy estate.

AP, Dec. 19, 2007

In re David and Joni R. Saffrin, 07 B 8536

Issued On: December 21, 2007

Summary: Debtors, the proud parents of a college student, argue that paying for their daughter's education is a necessary expense related to their family's health and welfare, and as such should be deducted from the calculation of available discretionary income that must be paid over to the Trustee in order for their Chapter 13 plan to be confirmed. Judge Goldgar disagrees, proving once again that resistance is futile.

See and download the opinion in PDF form here

As of March 14, 2008 the location of the Chapter 7 call and hearing times for Chapter 7 cases in Lake County, Illinois will change. Note it now. See the official Court notification and download it in PDF form here.