N is for Negative Notice: Local Rule 2002-4, FLMB

UPDATE - Revised 8/3/2020
The Court REVISES its Permissive Use of Negative Notice List and Accompanying Orders List on a regular basis. The latest revised list may be viewed on the Court's website or by clicking here.
 

                                                                                 Negative Notice

Yes, N is for Negative Notice.  I realize this page is really catering to attorneys where I practice, and as such, may not be very useful to others.  This page deals with procedural matters within in the Middle District of Florida only.  

The following is taken from the FLMB Newsletter, Volume 1, Issue 1, (No, not Willow Pond, as in the pic to the left) from Chief Judge Karen S. Jennemann.  This is a newsletter for the Middle District of Florida, and the following should not be used in other bankruptcy districts.  

 Local Rule 2002-4 provides for negative notice as permissible when filing certain pleadings in order to determine if a matter is contested. You must provide at least 21 days for responses unless the list provides otherwise. Check Local Rule 2002-4 for more details on how negative notice works in our district.

• NOTE: This list has been EXTENSIVELY REVISED.  See the latest posted updates at Negative Notice List.
  
  Should you have a question regarding the Negative Notice List, please feel free to contact me, or another bankruptcy attorney for advise.
  -----
  
  
  Other links to the letter "N" are as follows:
  Naked    New York Bankruptcy Lawyer, Jay S. Fleischman    
  Never    Cleveland Bankruptcy Attorney William Balena
  No Asset    Metro Richmond Consumer and Bankruptcy Attorney, Mitchell Goldstein
  No Asset Report    Honolulu Bankruptcy Lawyer, Stuart T. Ing 
  Non-PMSI    Philadelphia Suburban Bankruptcy Lawyer, Chris Carr
  Nondischargeable    Northern California Bankruptcy Lawyer, Cathy Moran 
  Nondischargeable    Metro Richmond Consumer and Bankruptcy Attorney, Mitchell Goldstein
  Nondischargeable Debt    Omaha and Lincoln, Nebraska Bankruptcy Attorney, Ryan D. Caldwell
  Notice    Colorado Springs Bankruptcy Attorney Bob Doig
  Non-exempt Property    Miami Bankruptcy Attorney, Dorota Trzeciecka  
  Notice    Taylor, Michigan Bankruptcy Attorney, Chris McAvoy
  
  
  
  
  
  

The Principal Paydown Plan Hits a Snag

Please find following, a letter from Billy Brewer, the President of the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys concerning the Principal Paydown Plan.  Despite the efforts of many, the Federal Housing Finance Agency does not favor the plan.  Hopefully with the help of those favoring the plan, it will move forward, but just not as fast as what we had hoped for.

Thanks to the good work of so many members, NACBA’s Principal Paydown Plan to help underwater homeowners in chapter 13 bankruptcy avoid foreclosure, has been endorsed by a substantial number of Members of Congress who in turn have pushed for action by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) to implement the plan.  In a series of private meetings and in letters to FHFA, Senators and Members of Congress have asked the FHFA to use its authority over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to require them to agree to the Principal Paydown Plan when proposed by a homeowner trying to save a home in chapter 13 bankruptcy.

Despite FHFA Director DeMarco’s initial positive comments about the Principal Paydown Plan, which he said struck him as “being responsible,” and a “credible way to address the crisis while recognizing various interests mortgaged properties,” he recently wrote to Congress informing them that the agency would not be implementing the Principal Paydown Plan.  FHFA concluded that few GSE borrowers have filed for chapter 13 bankruptcy and are underwater and therefore the proposal would not be all that helpful.  They did, however, commit to doing what they can to help eligible borrowers in bankruptcy get the HAMP modifications they qualify for.

While the FHFA response is disappointing and inadequate, and we believe wrong, we are gratified that the many Members of Congress who have pushed for this solution continue to be engaged and are looking for ways to get the Principal Paydown Plan implemented despite the FHFA’s position.  These Members of Congress recognize, as so many of us do, that the foreclosure crisis is not going away anytime soon and so long as it continues, the nation will not enjoy the kind of recovery that is needed to stabilize the economy and get people back to work.

We hope you will join the Board of Directors and Legislative Committee in continuing to get the word out about the Principal Paydown Plan and to seek support for it.  Our allies on and off Capitol Hill are committed to keeping up the push.  We take some comfort in knowing that NACBA was among the first to sound the bell more than five years ago about the impending foreclosure crisis and to propose a widely embraced solution that would have helped minimize the damage that has been done to the economy.  We were right then in proposing legislation to permit modification of mortgages in bankruptcy, an idea that again is gaining currency among policymakers, economists and others.  The Principal Paydown Plan was designed to achieve the same desired result without engaging the same level of opposition to changes to the bankruptcy code.  

We look forward to continuing to work with you to build support for the Principal Paydown Plan.  Please contact either of us if you have questions or comments.

Billy Brewer
President