When Congress enacted the CARES Act, it gave Chapter 13 debtors a critical lifeline: the ability to extend plan payments to 84 months under a temporary Bankruptcy Code provision, §1329(d). But with that provision’s expiration in March 2022, debtors who obtained COVID Plan Extensions now face a difficult reality when seeking to modify their confirmed plans.
In this article published in ALFN’s ANGLE magazine, ALAW Bankruptcy Partner Jeffrey S. Fraser examines key court rulings — including In re Nelson and In re Lewis — where courts declined to preserve the extended payment periods for debtors filing post-sunset plan modifications. As the courts concluded, they cannot “fix the mistake” of Congress in failing to reconcile the temporary extension with the existing 60-month cap under §1329(c).
Fraser explores what these rulings mean for debtors, trustees, and creditors navigating this unresolved gap in the Bankruptcy Code.
Read the full article in ALFN ANGLE, Vol. 10, Issue 1 (February 2023) →