Bethlehem Bankruptcy has had an active Bankruptcy Litigation practice for more than 15 years representing creditors and debtors throughout the nation. I have assisted clients in PA State Courts in their enforcement of rights, including appointment of receivers, when appropriate.
I handle all types of bankruptcy litigation including the following common types of disputes:
Discharge and Discharge Ability Contests – A discharge contest is a claim filed by a creditor or bankruptcy trustee asserting that a debtor should be prevented from obtaining a discharge of all of his debts due to the debtor’s misconduct. A discharge ability contest is a claim filed by a creditor asserting that a particular debt owed to the creditor should not be discharged due to:
- misconduct committed by the debtor related to the debt (usually fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, theft, conversion, or willful injury to a person or his property); or
- the status of the debt (for example certain tax debts, student loans, and alimony and support obligations).
Preference Claims – A preference is a claim asserted by a debtor (or his bankruptcy trustee) asserting that a pre-bankruptcy payment made by the debtor to one of his creditors constitutes an unlawful preferential payment and should be returned to the debtor or his trustee.
Fraudulent Conveyance Claims – A fraudulent conveyance is a claim filed by a bankruptcy trustee or creditor against a debtor or third party purchaser attempting to void (undo) a transfer of property by a debtor to the third party. To succeed, the creditor or trustee must prove that the property was transferred with an intent to avoid payment of a debt owed to the creditor, or was made for an unreasonably low consideration.
Home Mortgage Litigation – I represent both debtors and creditors in the prosecution and defense of home mortgage claims, which are claims that a home mortgage debt is inaccurate or is being improperly collected.
Automatic Stay Violations – The automatic stay is a law which requires creditors to immediately stop all activity to collect any debts owed by the debtor. The “stay” goes into effect immediately when a debtor files a bankruptcy case. An automatic stay violation is a claim filed by a debtor against a creditor asserting that the creditor violated the stay by illegally attempting to collect a pre-bankruptcy debt after the debtor filed for bankruptcy.
