DEBTOR-CREDITOR
Syllabus - Spring 2000
Professor Allington
tallingt@iupui.edu

Required Materials

E. Warren & J. Westbrook, The Law of Debtors and Creditors (3d ed. 1996, Aspen)

Bankruptcy Code, Rules and Official Forms (1999 Law School Ed., West Group)

Supplementary Materials (handout)

Assignments

Reading assignments for the semester are listed below. Specific assignments for each week will be posted on the course Web site at:

http://www.iulaw.indy.indiana.edu/instructors/allington/Debtor-Creditor.htm

Online Discussion Forum

To facilitate discussion outside of class, a Web-based forum has been created for this course with a link from the course Web page. Help on getting signed up and using the forum is also available through a link on the course Web page.

Classes

Members of the class will be divided into eight small discussion groups with approximately 10 students in each group. Beginning with the third week of the semester, classes will be conducted as follows: A regular class will be held on Monday covering the assigned reading material for the week. On Wednesday, the small discussion groups will meet separately (at the usual class time) to discuss the problems assigned for the week. I will sit in for a few minutes in some of the groups each week, with a goal of visiting each group every other week.

Each Wednesday, one member of each group will be responsible for filing a report on the Web-based forum summarizing the group's collective wisdom on the assigned problems. Thus, eight sets of answers will be posted on the forum each week for each set of assigned problems. Members of the class can then peruse these reports, add their own individual comments or questions, etc. I will also comment on the reports as appropriate, but will not grade them.

Attendance

The law school’s attendance policy provides that a student who is absent from more than 10 percent of the classes may be dropped from the course. You will be dropped from this course if you are absent from more than four classes. This includes the weekly small group classes mentioned above.

Examination

Your grade will be based on an examination, which is scheduled for Thursday, April 27, 2000 at 9:00 a.m. The exam will consist of three or four essay questions similar to the assigned problems in the casebook.

Secondary Materials

B. Blum, Bankruptcy and Debtor/Creditor: Examples and Explanations (2d ed. 1999, Aspen) (paperback)

Collier on Bankruptcy (15 ed. rev. 1997) (large multi-volume treatise)

D. Epstein, S. Nickles & J. White, Bankruptcy (1993, West) (hornbook)

D. Epstein, Bankruptcy and Other Debtor-Creditor Laws in a Nutshell (5th ed. 1995, West) (paperback)

S. Riesenfeld, Creditors Remedies and Debtors Protection (4th ed. 1987, West) (casebook on state debtor-creditor law)

C.J. Tabb, The Law of Bankruptcy (1997, Foundation Press) (hornbook)

Assigned Reading and Problems
  1. Debtor-Creditor Relations Outside of Bankruptcy
    1. Leverage [pp. 3-14; Supp. 1-6; Problems 1.2, 1.3]

    2. Debt Collection Practices [pp. 16-43; Supp. 7-8; Problems 2.1-2.3]

    3. Collection of Judgments [pp. 57-88; Problems 4.1-4.3]
      1. Garnishment [pp. 90-107; Supp. 9-11; Problems 5.1, 5.3]
      2. Pre-Judgment Remedies [pp. 107-122, 127-135; Supp. 12-15; Problem 6.1]
      3. Exemptions [pp. 136-157; Supp. 16-27; Problems 8.1-8.3]
      4. Fraudulent Transfers [pp. 159-180; Problems 9.1-9.3, 9.5]
      5. Exemption Planning [pp. 182-190; Problems 10.1-10.3]

  2. Consumer Bankruptcy
    1. Introduction [pp. 207-218]
      1. Bankruptcy Estate [pp. 219-233; Problems 12.1-12.4]
      2. Automatic Stay [pp. 235-242; Problems 13.1, 13.2]
      3. Exemptions [pp. 245-259; Problems 14.2, 14.4, 14.5]

    2. Chapter 7 Liquidation [pp. 263-272; Problems 15.1-15.3]
      1. Priorities [p. 272; Problem 16]
      2. Exceptions to Discharge [pp. 273-311; Problems 17.1, 17.3, 17.5, 17.6, 17.9]
      3. Effect of Discharge [pp. 313-317; Problems 18.1-18.5]
      4. Redemption, Reaffirmation [pp. 319-332; Problems 19.1-19.4, 19.6, 19.7]

    3. Chapter 13 Plans [pp. 335-338]
      1. Secured Creditors [pp. 338-356; Supp. 28-31; Problems 20.1-20.6]
      2. Unsecured Creditors [pp. 359-373; Problem 21.1, 21.2, 21.4]
      3. Classification of Debts [pp. 375-383; Problems 22.1-22.3]
      4. Modification and Dismissal [pp. 385-391; Problems 23.1, 23.3]
      5. Eligibility for Chapter 13; Chapter 12 [pp. 393-398; Problems 24.1, 24.4]
      6. Chap. 7 - Chap. 13 Choice [pp. 401-426; Supp. 32-34; Problems 25.1, 25.4]
      7. The Consumer Bankruptcy System [pp. 428-443; Problem 26.3]

  3. Business Bankruptcy
    1. Involuntary Bankruptcy [pp. 449-464; Problems 27.1, 27.2, 27.6]

    2. Chapter 11 Reorganization [pp. 469-479]

    3. Trustee's Avoiding Powers [pp. 541-542]
      1. Strong Arm [pp. 542-548; Problems 32.1-32.3]
      2. Preferences [pp. 549-556; Supp. 35-38; Problems 33.1-33.6]
      3. Executory Contracts [pp. 587-603; Problems 36.1, 36.3-36.5, 37.1, 37.2]

| Home | Assignments | Forum |