The following guest post by Austin Smith may be a bit technical but it contains critical information for both consumers and bankruptcy attorneys. For people who are not attorneys, this information may get a bit technical but you can print a copy of this article and take it with you to your bankruptcy attorney. I … Read more
by Austin C. Smith The Misinterpretation of 11 U.S.C. § 523(a)(8) [1]The common belief that all student loans are protected from discharge in bankruptcy is based on a misunderstanding of 11 U.S.C. § 523(a)(8). Since 1990, bankruptcy courts have been misreading the statute to prevent any student debt that could be construed as providing educational … Read more
It’s been years now that I’ve been rattling on about the ability to discharge some student loan debt in bankruptcy. I’ve watched the discussion go from “it’s not possible” to “that’s interesting” to “you’re right.” A Wall Street Journal article “Bankruptcy Becomes an Option for Some Borrowers Burdened by Student Loans” has finally moved this … Read more
Question: Dear Steve, I took out three private student loans through Sallie Mae (now Navient) between 2005 and 2007 to attend an ITT Tech campus (as I’m sure you’re aware, ITT has recently been shut down). What started out as $30,000 has now ballooned to approximately $62,000. The loans became delinquent in October of 2013 … Read more
Question: Dear Steve, In 2007, I made the mistake of attending a private university (SLU) for my freshman year before I transferred out. They maxed out my federal loans and directed me to private loans. I took out a CampusDoor private loan serviced by Wells Fargo Bank currently around 30k and another private loan that … Read more
Question: Dear Steve, I am going to provide a timeline of events and circumstances leading up to my current situation. I apologize if it’s too long but I think the circumstances are important to my case for loan discharge and I desperately need advice: 2009-2012: Attended the Illinois Institute of Art – Chicago (a branch … Read more
Question: Dear Steve, I have currently filed for bankruptcy and have over 83K in student loan debt. Wanted to try to get them discharged since It has been over 10 years since I have taken them out and have not had the means to pay the debt off. Is there a particular form I need … Read more
Question: Dear Steve, I have a private student loan from AES that was taken out in 2004 Original Balance: $22,099. Current Balance: $21,518. Total Interest + Principle paid to date: $21,216. (Total principle satisfied $8300, the rest is all interest), so how I still have nearly the same balance as I started with is baffling. … Read more
The Federal School Code List is a critical tool to use to verify if private student loans might be protected in bankruptcy. If the school was Title IV eligible and potentially protected they would appear on this list. Otherwise the private student loan may be able to be discharged in full in a special bankruptcy … Read more
The Federal School Code List is a critical tool to use to verify if private student loans might be protected in bankruptcy. If the school was Title IV eligible and potentially protected they would appear on this list. Otherwise the private student loan may be able to be discharged in full in a special bankruptcy … Read more