Most of us can recognize a scam, especially when it comes in the form of an offer to repair your credit. Advertisements by credit repair firms found in the local pennysaver (you know, the free ads found at your local laundry mat) promise to magically erase the negative marks from your credit reports. Like dad always advised, “If it seems too good to be true,...

In 2005, Congress changed the bankruptcy laws to include a new “means test” for consumer debtors. The purpose of the means test is to ensure that debtors are not “abusing” the bankruptcy system by unfairly discharging debts they can afford to repay. The means test is a gatekeeper for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and disqualifies certain high income debtors from Chapter 7 who can afford a...

The Bankruptcy Code separates debts into three general classes: (1) secured debts, like a house or car loan; (2) unsecured debts, like medical bills or credit cards; and (3) priority debts. Priority debts are those obligations that Congress has identified as important enough to have a special repayment status if money is distributed to creditors. The Bankruptcy Code establishes the order that unsecured claims are...

Prozac Birth Defects Raise Empirical, Legal Questions