education department

Student Loan Discharges Approved In 99% Of Cases Under New Policy

The Biden administration this week released highly-anticipated data on a new initiative that makes it easier for borrowers experiencing hardships to discharge their student loans in bankruptcy.

The Education Department and the Department of Justice rolled out experimental guidance last fall to encourage cooperation between the government and student loan borrowers seeking bankruptcy relief. After a year, the program is showing clear signs of success.

“One year ago, we set out to simplify and improve the process for student loan borrowers in bankruptcy,” said Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta in a statement on Thursday. “I am thrilled that our one-year review indicates that our efforts have made a real difference in borrowers’ lives by ensuring student-loan discharges are more accessible to eligible borrowers. We will continue working with our partners at the

… Read the rest
November 28, 2023 by ATTORNEY

Discharging Student Loans in Bankruptcy Show Mixed Results

Alista Lineburg is not a lawyer, but she assumed the role when she couldn’t find one to help her discharge $146,000 of federal student debt in bankruptcy. The process requires a separate lawsuit against the government, something that many lawyers refuse to take on given the time, expense and difficulty of winning.

Ms. Lineburg, 49, knows this all too well. Even when the bankruptcy court tried to assign her counsel, there were no takers. “The attorney called and she said, ‘You can’t win this,’” Ms. Lineburg recalled.

So she pressed on, alone.

And, despite the odds, she won her case.

“I feel like I can finally get ahead,” said Ms. Lineburg, who lives in Fairport Harbor, Ohio. She was laid off from her information technology job in June, just two months after clearing her decades-old debt, from an undergraduate degree and a master’s in business administration.

Unlike credit card, medical and other consumer debts, student loans don’t automatically disappear in bankruptcy. Debtors need to take an extra legal step — both challenging and costly — known as an adversary proceeding.

But more people in bankruptcy are beginning to use a legal process introduced in November by the Biden administration that

… Read the rest
August 22, 2023 by ATTORNEY
May 2024
M T W T F S S
 12345
6789101112
13141516171819
20212223242526
2728293031