Bankruptcy › Wills, Trusts, & Estate Planning

Following in Ohio’s Footsteps: The Expansion of Asbestos Transparency Legislation

Asbestos personal injury trusts proliferated after many of the early primary asbestos product manufacturers reorganized under bankruptcy law. It is estimated that nearly 100 companies have declared bankruptcy in the face of...more

Indalex: What Are the Pension Implications?

On February 1, 2013, the Supreme Court of Canada released its much anticipated decision in Sun Indalex Finance, LLC v. United Steelworkers, a case which pitted the claims of pensioners against those of secured creditors in...more

New Concerns for Bondholders, Lenders and Other Creditors Following SCC’s Indalex Decision

On February 1, 2013, the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) released its much-awaited decision in the Indalex case. While the central issue in Indalex was the priority of wind-up deficiencies in defined benefit pension plans...more

Update on Preparing Living Wills for Bank Holding Companies and Depository Institutions

This analysis updates a previous memo and incorporates advice we have received from the Federal Reserve Board (“FRB”) and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) regarding the preparation of living wills for bank...more

Supreme Court of Canada Affirms Federal Paramountcy in Insolvency but Leaves Uncertainty for the Credit Community Regarding...

The Supreme Court of Canada released its highly anticipated decision in Indalex Limited (Re) this morning. The ruling stemmed from an appeal of an Ontario Court of Appeal decision that had created commercial uncertainty...more

Points & Authorities - Fall 2012

In This Issue: - The Innovative Design Protection Act: Bound for Success or Doomed to Fail? - Strategic Licensing Considerations - New Faces - Points from the President - Think Again Before Walking Away from...more

Is your IRA safe from creditors?

If a substantial portion of a person’s wealth is in one or more IRAs, protecting the assets in those accounts is critical to his or her estate plan. IRAs provide significant benefits, including tax-deferred wealth...more

Legal Sense with James Andrews

Attorney James R. Andrews II is the host of Legal Sense with James Andrews. James was born in East Orange, New Jersey. He graduated from high school in Whippany, New Jersey and then attended the University of Virginia where...more

How Bankruptcy Affects an Inheritance

People may be concerned about an inheritance they expect to receive before filing for bankruptcy relief or what happens to an inheritance they receive after filing for bankruptcy relief....more

Damon Key Legal Alert (Spring/Summer 2012) - Legal newsletter with articles on Foreign Accounts and the 2012 Offshore Voluntary...

Legal newsletter with articles on Foreign Accounts and the 2012 Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Initiative, Bankruptcy law, the new I-9 Form in Immigration law, and an update on the law of Hawaii vacation rentals. ...more

5 Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Bankruptcy Attorney

A good bankruptcy attorney is an investment towards a brighter future. When you begin to seek out the right attorney for your particular case, you should keep in mind that you’re not buying a product, but instead you are...more

Fifth Circuit Rules that Inherited IRAs Are Exempt under Code

Originally posted in the ABI Journal, Vol. XXXI, No. 5, June 2012. Editor’s Note: For additional perspective on inherited IRAs, read the May 2011 cover article and a letter to the editor published in the July/August 2011...more

Bankruptcy Law and Inheritance

If you receive an inheritance, what does the bankruptcy law say about it? More specifically, if you are given an inheritance after you file for bankruptcy what happens to it? The bankruptcy code has different ways of treating...more

Can I Inherit Property While I’m in Bankruptcy or File Bankruptcy After I Inherit Property?

Can I Inherit Property While I’m in Bankruptcy or File Bankruptcy After I Inherit Property?...more

Conversion: Chapter 13 to a Chapter 7

At the law office of Robert L. Firth located in Cathedral City, California, we are committed to providing quality legal representation to individuals and businesses facing difficult legal challenges. We believe in providing...more

Estate of Badii ex rel. Badii v. Metropolitan Hospice, Inc., C.A. No. 6192-VCP (Del. Ch. Mar. 12, 2012) (Parsons, V.C.)

In this memorandum opinion, the Court of Chancery appointed a receiver for an insolvent corporation deadlocked over how to discharge a tax lien. Defendant Metropolitan Hospice, Inc. (“MHI”), a closely held corporation,...more

Clawback–Myth Or Monster? (Or, “Clawback For Dummies”)

[Okay, we are not dummies, but this is a very tough issue to follow in its entirety for most of us.] Until recently, the term “clawback” did not mean much to estate planners and tax attorneys. Those with some knowledge...more

Wealth Management Update - March 2012

A monthly report for wealth management professionals. In This Issue: - March Interest Rates for GRATs, Sales to Defective Grantor Trusts, Intra-Family Loans and Split Interest Charitable Trusts - In re Grube...more

Weiss v. Boyle

Trust Beneficiary Massachusetts Homestead Invalidated

The debtor in this Chapter 7 bankruptcy case claimed a homestead exemption for real property held in trust. Although the debtor was a beneficiary holding fifty percent of the interests in the trust and occupied the property,...more

Bankruptcy for a collection-proof senior citizen?

Senior citizens have contacted me to discuss the possibility of bankruptcy for them. Most of them have no assets that their creditors could get; they could "exempt" from creditors all of their assets. What do I say to them?...more

If I inherit money after my bankruptcy, can I keep it?

I need to file a Chapter 7 bankruptcy. My father is elderly and quite ill. If he dies after my bankruptcy and I inherit money from that, can I keep it? In general, when a person files bankruptcy, his or her "bankruptcy...more

Judicial Restraint in the Early Days Following Stern v. Marshall

Over five months have passed since the United States Supreme Court entered its landmark decision of Stern v. Marshall, 131 S. Ct. 2594 (2011) [2011 BL 165774] the Court’s first key ruling in decades on bankruptcy court...more

No Surprise Here

There has been quite a bit of buzz about a recent bankruptcy case involving an Alaska asset protection trust. However, the case merely confirms a weakness in the use of domestic asset protection trusts that was obvious even...more

FDIC Adopts Final Rule Requiring “Living Wills” For Financial Institutions; Rule Requires Financial Institutions To Describe How...

On September 13, 2011, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation approved a final rule requiring certain financial institutions to prepare a plan for their dismantling in the event of material financial distress or...more

Asset Protection Planning

Asset protection planning is a hot topic for many people. This article summarizes various asset protection planning strategies, short of filing for bankruptcy....more