by Devin Sawdayi | Jan 25, 2018
A California bankruptcy court ruled that a debtor couple’s federal tax liabilities were subject to discharge under Chapter 7 of the Bankruptcy Code. In re Martin, 508 B.R. 717 (Bankr. E.D. Cal. 2014) (PDF file). The debtors did not file Form 1040 tax returns for those...
by Devin Sawdayi | Nov 26, 2017
Chapter 7 bankruptcy enables qualifying debtors to pay down their debts by liquidating their non-exempt assets, followed by a discharge of many remaining debts. In order to qualify for a Chapter 7 discharge, debtors must demonstrate that they meet the criteria set out...
by Devin Sawdayi | Nov 13, 2017
A bankruptcy court recently ruled on a seeming conflict between two sections of the Bankruptcy Code dealing with proofs of claim (POCs) for tax debts. In re DeVries, No. 13-bk-41591, mem. dec. (Bankr. D. Id., Apr. 28, 2015). The Chapter 13 trustee objected to a POC...
by Devin Sawdayi | Sep 20, 2017
Congress passed the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as “Obamacare,” in 2010, but some of its more controversial provisions did not take full effect until last year. The requirement that individuals and families either have qualifying health insurance coverage or...
by Devin Sawdayi | Apr 22, 2017
An extravagant lifestyle was not enough to overcome the presumption that debts incurred prior to filing for bankruptcy, including tax debts, are dischargeable, according to the Ninth Circuit. Hawkins v. Franchise Tax Bd. of California, No. 11-16276, slip op. (9th...
by Devin Sawdayi | Jul 24, 2015
Federal bankruptcy law allows debtors to discharge tax penalties if they meet certain criteria. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) may penalize individual taxpayers for failing to file a tax return by the April 15 due date, 26 U.S.C. § 6651(a)(1). These penalties are...
