• One creditor may file for an involuntary bankruptcy proceeding against a borrower, if the borrower has less than 12 creditors and the aggregate undisputed debts are $13,475 or less. If the debtor has more than 12 creditors and the aggregate total of undisputed debts is more than $13,475, then 3 creditors must jointly file for an involuntary bankruptcy proceeding. See 11 U.S.C. § 303(b)(1)(2). 

• If a bankruptcy trustee sues to recover monies, he must file it in the district where the defendant resides (not where the bankruptcy is filed) if the trustee seeks (1) to recover a money judgment of property that is less than $1,100, or (2) to recover a consumer debt that is less than $16,425, or a non-consumer debt that is less than $10,950.  See 28 § 1409(b). 

• Sometimes the most valuable asset of a failed business are intangible, such as the company’s name, logo, trademark, customer list and phone number. Often, these items may be purchased from the trustee in a bankruptcy proceeding.

• A creditor may move for a dismissal of a bankruptcy if certain grounds can be proven. A dismissal of the bankruptcy case restores the status quo so that it is as if the bankruptcy had never been filed. See 11 U.S.C. § 707(a).

• A creditor may request copies of a chapter 13 debtor’s tax returns and a statement of the debtor’s income and expenditures for the most recently completed tax year and a statement of monthly income and expenditures.   See 11 U.S.C. § 521 (e)(2)(c).

• When a creditor files a proof of claim, it is prima facie evidence that the claim is valid until the trustee or debtor objects to it and then proves otherwise at a hearing.

• Note that by filing a proof of claim in a case, a creditor consents to the bankruptcy court’s jurisdiction and waives any right to a jury trial it might otherwise have had under applicable state or federal law.  See Langenkamp v. Culp, 498 U.S. 42 (1990).

Michael