Bankruptcy Attorney

Mark J. Markus has practiced exclusively bankruptcy law in Los Angeles, California since 1991.

Go to the Law Office of Mark J. Markus main webpage.for more information and to schedule a consultation.

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means test

Means Test for Bankruptcy

Saturday, October 11th, 2008

The means test is a budget analysis created by Congress purportedly to determine whether one is ineligible to file for bankruptcy relief under Chapter 7, Chapter 11 or Chapter 13.   I say “ineligible” as opposed to “eligible” because in most court districts, “passing” the means test is not conclusive on the issue of eligibility—meaning, that [...]

Short Sales or Foreclosures: Which is Better?

Thursday, September 18th, 2008

There is an epidemic of people defaulting on their mortgage payments, as everyone knows. Real estate brokers are pushing hard to have people do “short sales” on their properties, instead of allowing them to go to foreclosure. In most circumstances, this is a very bad idea.
What is a short sale? A short [...]

Non-Filing Spouse’s Income Must Be Included in Bankruptcy

Thursday, July 17th, 2008

The fact that a non-filing spouse’s income must be included in the bankruptcy case of the other spouse is one of the most difficult concepts for my clients to grasp. The common scenario is this:
One spouse has certain debts which are only in that spouse’s name and may have even been incurred entirely prior [...]

Ninth Circuit Rules that Means Test Controls Chapter 13 Plan Length and Payment

Friday, June 27th, 2008

Earlier this month, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in Maney v. Kagenveama (In re Kagenveama), 527 F.3d 990 (9th Cir. June 2008) held that where an above-median chapter 13 debtor has negative “disposable income” per the means test but a monthly surplus per schedules I and J, the debtor is NOT [...]