- Kansas Bankruptcy Filings Up 23%
Posted November 25, 2009, 3:11 pm by Jill Michaux, Topeka Consumer Bankruptcy Specialist
At economic conditions worsen for people, it is no surprise that bankruptcy filings rose 22.6% in Kansas and 34.5% in the United States this past year. Filings have steadily climbed since the so-called bankruptcy reform act went into effect in 2005. Four people for every 1,000 in Kansas filed bankruptcy, ranking Kansas 31st in the nation. [...]
- Governor's budget cuts hourly rate for appointed counsel
Posted November 25, 2009, 8:30 am by Carl Folsom
The governor recently released his plan to balance the state's budget for fiscal year 2010. The expenditure changes for BIDS are described as follows: Add $173,163 for Assigned Counsel caseload; then reduce $686,456 to reduce Assigned Counsel hourly rate from $80 to $62. Here is a press release from the governor's office discussing the budget plan.
- January 2010 KSC Docket
Posted November 20, 2009, 4:57 am by Randall Hodgkinson
Here are the criminal cases on the KSC docket for January 25-28, 2010. These summaries are based on the issues listed in the briefs filed and may not very accurately or fully describe the actual issues in the cases. I recommend you review the briefs yourself if you would like more details. Don't forget, arguments are streamed live over the internet at the appellate court website (here) if you would like to listen in to any of these arguments. January 25--Monday--a.m. State v. Joshua Stone, No....
- US Trustee Website Changed
Posted November 18, 2009, 10:40 am by Jill Michaux, Topeka Consumer Bankruptcy Specialist
The website URL for the United States Trustee's Offices in Region 20, which includes Kansas, has changed to: http://www.justice.gov/ust/r20/index.htm
- Governor issues pardon
Posted November 17, 2009, 8:39 am by Randall Hodgkinson
Here is a Lawrence Journal World article reporting that the KU Defender Project helped Samuel Jarvis Hunt obtain a pardon of his 1969 Sedgwick County robbery conviction. The article sets out the history and background of the case: For some observers, Hunt's pardon represents a righting of a wrong that highlighted tension in Kansas, and in the country, in the 1960s. Hunt, along with seven other black defendants from Kansas known as the "Wichita 8," was convicted of robbery by an all-white jury....
- My Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Is Filed, Now What?
Posted November 15, 2009, 8:14 am by Jill Michaux, Topeka Consumer Bankruptcy Specialist
Answers to your basic chapter 13 bankruptcy questions by Jan Hamilton, Standing Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Trustee in Topeka, Kansas: Please Read This Entire Letter. It contains information needed to complete your Chapter 13 Plan and answers certain questions you may have. If you have a question that is not addressed here, you should contact your attorney. [...]
- Petitions for Review granted
Posted November 10, 2009, 7:13 am by Carl Folsom
On November 5, 2009, the KSC granted petitions for review in the following criminal cases: State v. Walker, No. 99,457 (Kan. App. Feb. 27, 2009) Issues presented: 1. Whether there was reasonable suspicion for police to detain Walker 2. Whether the extension of the investigatory stop was an illegal detention. 3. Whether the discovery of the warrant cured the extension of the detention. State v. Stieben, No. 99,446 (Kan. App. Feb. 13, 2009) (unpublished) Issues presented (1) Illegal stop - fog...
- Speedy acquittal in theft case
Posted November 2, 2009, 4:08 am by Carl Folsom
Lacy Gilmour won recently in State v. Mitchell, getting an acquittal in a Sedgwick County theft prosecution in less than 20 minutes. Here is Lacy's decription of the case. Thanks to What the Judge Ate for Breakfast for the tip.
- Permanently incompetent to stand trial
Posted October 31, 2009, 2:36 am by Randall Hodgkinson
Lane Williams and Kirk Lowry from the Disability Rights Center of Kansas won in State v. Johnson, No. 96,526 (Kan. Oct. 30, 2009), affirming Judge Becker's dismissal of a Reno County DUI-manslaughter prosecution. This case has a fairly long history, as described in the opinion. As noted in the opinion, Mr. Johnson drove a vehicle into a tree, killing the passenger and himself suffering coma-inducing brain injury. The state subsequently charged Mr. Johnson with DUI-manslaughter. To make a fairly...
- Wichita Jeweler Files Bankruptcy
Posted October 27, 2009, 7:02 am by Jill Michaux, Topeka Consumer Bankruptcy Specialist
Barriers Inc, a long-time Wichita jeweler filed a chapter 11 bankruptcy Friday. The store is located at Douglas and Oliver. Ed Nazar is the company's bankruptcy attorney.
- Restrictions on cross-examination warrant new trial
Posted October 22, 2009, 4:16 am by Randall Hodgkinson
Ron Wurtz, federal PD, won in U.S. v. Robinson, No. 08-3180 (10th Cir. Oct. 20, 2009), obtaining a new trial in a federal felon in possession prosecution. The issue prompting reversal was failure to allow access to an informant's medical records and prohibition on questioning the informant about mental health history: Six days before Robinson's trial, the government's star witness-the CI who purchased the gun from Robinson-was involuntarily committed to a mental health facility. The district...
- Super Lawyers List Names Mark and Jill
Posted October 21, 2009, 12:20 am by Jill Michaux, Topeka Consumer Bankruptcy Specialist
Our attorneys at the Bankruptcy Law Office, Mark Neis and Jill Michaux, have been chosen for inclusion on the 2009 Missouri & Kansas Super Lawyers list. Only five per cent of Missouri and Kansas attorneys are chosen each year. The Super Lawyers selection process includes a statewide survey of lawyers, peer nominations based on 12 indicators [...]
- December 2009 KSC Docket
Posted October 20, 2009, 4:21 am by Randall Hodgkinson
Here are the criminal cases on the KSC docket for December 7-11,2009. These summaries are based on the issues listed in the briefs filed and may not very accurately or fully describe the actual issues in the cases. I recommend you review the briefs yourself if you would like more details. Don't forget, arguments are streamed live over the internet at the appellate court website (here) if you would like to listen in to any of these arguments. December 7--Monday--a.m. State v. Michael Hughes, No....
- Do I Need a Lawyer to File Bankruptcy?
Posted October 19, 2009, 8:26 am by Jill Michaux, Topeka Consumer Bankruptcy Specialist
You need a lawyer to file bankruptcy. Without an attorney, you may lose your property and may not get your debts discharged by the bankruptcy. You need a bankruptcy attorney to advise you: whether to file bankruptcy, what chapter to file, what exemptions to claim. You expect a board certified specialist for your doctor. Expect it for your lawyer, too. [...]
- What is the Bankruptcy Discharge?
Posted October 18, 2009, 2:48 pm by Jill Michaux, Topeka Consumer Bankruptcy Specialist
Bankruptcy Won't Discharge These Debts Will I Lose My Bankruptcy Case? Bankruptcy Crimes
- Kansas Home Foreclosures Up 40%
Posted October 18, 2009, 7:18 am by Jill Michaux, Topeka Consumer Bankruptcy Specialist
The home mortgage foreclosure crisis got dramatically worse in Kansas in July, August and September 2009. RealtyTrac, a California company that tracks foreclosures, reports 3,402 foreclosure filings in Kansas during the third quarter, an increase of almost 40%. The Kansas foreclosure rate is below the national average of one in every 136 households. The [...]
- What Happens at Bankruptcy Court Hearings?
Posted October 17, 2009, 2:37 pm by Jill Michaux, Topeka Consumer Bankruptcy Specialist
- What are Bankruptcy Crimes?
Posted October 16, 2009, 2:31 pm by Jill Michaux, Topeka Consumer Bankruptcy Specialist
Examples of bankruptcy crimes: Fraudulent transfer of assets Hiding property from the bankruptcy trustee Making false statements in bankruptcy Disobeying a bankruptcy court order
- What Happens at My Bankruptcy Hearing?
Posted October 15, 2009, 2:23 pm by Jill Michaux, Topeka Consumer Bankruptcy Specialist
Watch what happens at a bankruptcy meeeting of creditors, also known as your 341 hearing. Why will they ask me at my bankruptcy meeting?
- Retired, Broke, Bankrupt
Posted October 14, 2009, 2:40 pm by Jill Michaux, Topeka Consumer Bankruptcy Specialist
The over-55 crowd is the mostly likely age group to declare bankruptcy, the AARP says. This group is carrying mortgages, home equity loans and credit card balances. According to an AARP study, over half of this group spends most of their income paying down debt. A quarter of these folks pay over 75% of their [...]