Bankruptcy Filings

Atlanta Attorney Alex Dolhancyk Tackles New Role Leading Education Program for National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys

The National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys (NACBA) announced that Atlanta bankruptcy attorney Alex Dolhancyk of The Dolhancyk Law Firm in Jonesboro, GA will serve as its new state chair representing Georgia.

As NACBA’s state chair in Georgia, Dolhancyk will serve as the official liaison between the group’s leadership in Washington, D.C. and its member attorneys, bankruptcy judges and other court officials in the state, as well as serving as a primary contact for local media regarding consumer bankruptcy issues.

Serving approximately 3,500 members in all 50 states and Puerto Rico, NACBA is the only national organization dedicated to serving the needs of consumer bankruptcy attorneys and protecting the rights of consumer debtors in bankruptcy.

Alex Dolhancyk said: “NACBA’s efforts in advocating debtor’s rights at the national level is unequaled. I am honored to work with NACBA’s leadership and Georgia attorneys in continuing that effort.”

NACBA Executive Director Dan LaBert said: “Our leadership team is dedicated to continuing our mission in Georgia to help to protect the rights of families in financial distress at a grassroots level. Our national membership is supported by a strong network of state chairs appointees. Alex is a longstanding NACBA member and will make an excellent state chair in Georgia. We look forward to working closely with him to represent bankruptcy attorneys and their important policy objectives across a wide range of issues.”

Dolhancyk has represented consumer debtors in bankruptcy cases for over 27 years. He is licensed to practice in Georgia, Tennessee and New York, and has numerous reported cases in the Northern District of Georgia bankruptcy. Dolhancyk is board certified in consumer bankruptcy law, and is an active member of the Bankruptcy Law section of the Georgia Bar Association and in the Metro Atlanta Consumer Bankruptcy Attorney Group. He holds an LLM in Business Law from Emory University.

The Supreme Court’s Caulkett decision, reversing the 11^th Circuit’s ruling that chapter 7 debtors could strip off totally underwater mortgages, was disappointing, if not totally unexpected. As amicus, NCBRC had considered the risk that an unfavorable, overly broad opinion in this case could negatively impact lien-stripping in chapter 13 and, in addition to arguing for affirmance, specifically sought to limit any holding to chapter 7 cases and to preserve the right to strip liens in chapter 13. This effort was successful. In fact, Justice Thomas’s remarks reinforce the continued validity of the widely accepted interpretation of Nobelman in chapter 13. This case should have no effect at all on lien-stripping in chapter 13.

Caulkett simply reaffirms the holding in Dewsnup which applies only in chapter 7 cases. The opinion made this clear in several ways. First, the court distinguished Nobelman, stating that Nobelman “addressed the interaction between the meaning of the term “secured claim” in § 506(a) and an entirely separate provision, §1322(b)(2).” (emphasis supplied) Second, while stating that it is may be inadvisable to adopt a line-drawing test where a difference of $1 could have an arbitrary impact, the court nonetheless found that such tests are appropriate where Congress has drawn the line, as the court had found it had done in Nobelman. Third, the conclusion of the opinion states “a debtor in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceeding may not void a junior mortgage lien under §506(d) when the debt owed on a senior mortgage lien exceeds the current value of the collateral.”

The NCBRC amicus brief was the only one to focus on limiting any decision to chapter 7. This is another example of the importance of NCBRC’s work, which can only continue with your support. Please donate at www.ncbrc.org

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National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys

New NACBA State Chair Announced For Georgia

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