Debt Collection Process

Do you think Obama will undue the bankruptcy law changes that GW Bush enacted?

Just curious, because I know this was one of the less popular things the Bush administration did.

Public Comments

1. I'm not sure. They might revisit them particularly in light of the economic hardships so many families are facing.
2. I think the laws were great. If you lose a job and keep in contact with your creditors, they will work with you. People who spend spend spend, and do not have the money, should have to pay back what they spent, it causes others who pay their bills to have higher interest rates! Let's say you are flat broke, and you have to have your transmission on your car repaired, yes, that would be a necessary credit card charge! Let's say you are flat broke, and you just "need" the latest cell phone or gadget, no, that would not be a necessary credit card charge!
3. You can bet that many changes are on their way.
4. Biden was big time supporter on that bill.
5. I think he should. When folks file, they are at the end of their rope and their backs to the wall. The penalty for filing is enough to at least make people try to rectify their condition. This new law is only the straw that breaks the camels back. I'm sure suicides have picked up since the law was put in place.
6. You would greatly benefit from a government 101 course. The President heads the Executive Branch of government. The Legislative Branch (House and Senate) enacts laws, including bankruptcy laws.
7. Yes, it helped create the current meltdown.
8. I'm an Obama supporter, but I hope he doesn't change the law. I can honestly say it was one of the few things George W. Bush did that I supported. There are provisions in the bankruptcy law that make considerations for medical reasons and there is also a provision that keeps deadbeat parents from claiming bankruptcy on back child support. What the law has done, has made it nearly impossible for irresponsible individuals to wrack up frivolous personal debt and claim bankruptcy. Joe Biden was a supporter of the bill, along with 17 other Democrats that I admire and respect. Creditors are willing to work with individuals that have had a change in their financial picture so there are very few instances where bankruptcy is actually the only choice.
9. Its one of the un-thought-through things that Bush wanted that got us here. Maybe I shouldn't say Bush wanted it so much as the credit card banks did. And we all know how much Bush loved Big Bidness. Certainly aspects of that law will be changed. And business will have to go back to good business practices instead of looking for all the money and none of the responsibility.
10. A few points before I answer: 1) The bankruptcy laws are a legislative issue - statutes that are passed by Congress; however, no statutes can become law until and unless they are signed by the President, and it is the Executive Departments (Justice, Treasury, etc.) that are charged with enforcing those laws (and therefore making the initial interpretations of them). 2) Many of the changes made by the Republican-led Congress under the curiously-named "Bankruptcy Abuse and Consumer Protection Act of 2005" were productive and have cut down on bankruptcy abuses; some of the changes were simply gifts to the credit card industry (especially taken in the context of wholesale deregulation of credit card interest rates and so forth). 3) Any changes to the Bankruptcy laws should be made as a part of a greater plan to pull the economy out of the crapper - they should help provide needed protection for consumers who have no other way out of extreme financial distress while also protecting honest creditors from fraudulent debtors. That said, I think President Obama (as of 01/20/09) should encourage Congress to ease up on some of the 'needs testing' standards and subsidize the cost of the debtor counseling and education that is required before and after a bankruptcy case is filed (at least for those with lower disposable income). There should also be non-Bankruptcy legislation to reign in the outrageous interest rates, fees and penalties now allowed which have greatly contributed to the increased need for bankruptcy relief. Similar corrections should be made with regard to the home mortgage crisis. Edit: Regarding calling creditors to try to work out a resolution when you are in financial trouble - sometimes that does work, sometimes it does not. As often as not (in my 24 years experience as an attorney), trying to 'work things out' with most creditors is an exercise in futility. Sometimes it does work, though, and debtors should be encouraged to make such attempts after filing. Perhaps legislation that decreases the time a bankruptcy is reported after filing for debtors who successfully 'work out' some debts with creditors would help. That would require some significant changes in the Bankruptcy laws, though, as well as the laws regarding credit reporting.