Nationwide bankruptcy filings reached their highest levels of the last five years between April and June, according to government data released last Wednesday. This represented an increase of 11 percent from the same time period in 2009.

422,061 bankruptcy filings were reported during that time period this year as opposed to 381,073 during the same time frame in 2009. Filings between January and March of this year numbered 388,148.

Quarterly filings have not exceeded 400,000 since a record 667,431 were filed in the fourth quarter of 2005.

Consumer bankruptcies jumped 21 percent, to 1.51 million, from the same time last year.

If you find yourself in this unfortunate position, contact the New Orleans Chapter 7 bankruptcy lawyers of The Law Offices of Kervin & Young, LLC at 504-599-5906 as soon as possible to discuss your financial options.

Michael Vick is not a stranger to the courtroom. From dogfighting to the shooting after his birthday party, trouble seems to follow this star athlete. He will once again be appearing in a courtroom, this time for violating the terms of bankruptcy.

According to ESPN, “In the new proceeding filed against Vick in Newport News, Va., his bankruptcy trustee asserts that instead of paying what he owed to numerous creditors as he faced the dogfighting charges and likely bankruptcy, Vick made payments to his mother, the mothers of his three children, his sister and his brother.”

Bankruptcy law does not allow for one to give away gifts before paying back creditors. These gifts are called “voidable preferences.” If the trustees do determine that these monetary gifts were viable money to give to creditors to settle his estate, then they can try to regain the funds.

If you or someone you know is facing bankruptcy, contact a New Orleans Bankruptcy Attorney at The Law Offices of Kervin and Young, LLC, by dialing 504-599-5906.

Catherine Curan from The New York Post reports, “Underwater homeowners are jumping onto an unexpected financial life raft that lets them escape crippling second mortgage debts and keep their homes — Chapter 13 bankruptcy.”

Curan writes that, if the home worth is estimated at less than the first mortgage, then the owner can go to bankruptcy court and ask to reclassify their debt from the second mortgage. It would then transform from a secured debt to an unsecured debt. A secured debt has to be paid whereas an unsecured debt does not have to be paid in full.

This economy provides the perfect breeding ground for these situations. Curan consulted with a New York City bankruptcy attorney who said that about 20 percent of his Chapter 13 bankruptcy clients, that are homeowners, qualified for this circumstance.

This offers a new alternative to borrowers who are unable to reach a loan modification agreement with their bank.

If you need help with a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy, contact an experienced and trustworthy New Orleans Chapter 13 bankruptcy lawyer at Kervin and Young, LLC, by dialing 504-599-5906.

The first new public park to be made in New Orleans in the last 20 years is underway after a film production company went bankrupt, leaving the Trust for Public Land to bid for it.  The park-building project is expected to cost approximately $3.8 million and it will be 18 acres large.  The park is being built along the Lafitte Corridor in the Mid-City neighborhood of New Orleans.  A community development block grant is funding the build.

The Louisiana Institute of Film Technology went bankrupt after the man who headed the organization was sentenced to five years in prison starting in April.   He was sentenced for allegedly being involved in a scheme to bribe the former Louisiana film commissioner in exchange for movie tax credits. The property was purchased by the Trust for Public land after bankruptcy proceedings concluded.

If you are considering filing your company for bankruptcy, trust the competent and professional New Orleans bankruptcy attorneys of the Law Offices of Kervin & Young, L.L.C.  Contact them by calling 504-599-5906 today.

A recent TransUnion report shows that fewer people are late in making their credit card payments this quarter, as opposed to last quarter.

Credit card delinquency is highest in Nevada, at 1.79 percent, with Florida following at 1.59 percent. North and South Dakota and Alaska possess the lowest delinquency rate.

The national average credit card debt also fell for the fourth consecutive quarter, down around $300 from $5,434 to $5,165.

In a news release, Ezra Baker, the director of consulting and strategy in TransUnion’s financial services business unit, said “The last four quarters of consecutive decreases in credit card balances shows that consumers continue to focus on paying down their credit cards in response to economic uncertainty and the continued somewhat anemic employment outlook, wanting to keep a credit cushion available for hard times.”

If you are in need of legal advice in bankruptcy law, contact the New Orleans bankruptcy attorneys of Kervin & Young, LLC, at 504-599-5906 today to discuss your legal options.

In early February, the second-largest movie rental company in the U. S., Movie Gallery, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Since then, downward trends in profits has led the company to move ahead with liquidation. The company named Great American WF LLC to liquidate Movie Gallery, as Great American promised $62.3 million to Movie Gallery after liquidation.

The courts approved both the motion to liquidate and a motion filed for expediency in the liquidator process. May 19 was set as the court’s decision date, and May 18 will hear all objections.

Great American will be responsible for liquidating a remaining 1,296 stores after Movie Gallery finishes closing another estimated 270 stores. In return, they will receive approximately 3 percent of sales, an unspecific sum, and a $1.75 million fee if a better offer surfaces before liquidation can commence.

The largest movie rental company in the country, Blockbuster, has also reported sales downturns, especially compared to rivals such as YouTube, Netflix, and Redbox locations.

If your business is facing extreme financial burdens, call the legal professionals of Kervin & Young, LLC, at 504-599-5906. The New Orleans Chapter 11 bankruptcy attorneys are here to help you with legal advice and the experience you need to explore your possible legal options.

A recent RealtyTrac Inc. report shows that nationwide foreclosure filings are finally going down.

April is the first month this year that has seen the number of foreclosure filings nationwide fall, with a 2 percent overall decrease. Some states, like New York, experienced a drop of up to 23 percent.

“There were two important milestones in the April numbers that show foreclosure activity has begun to plateau — but at a very high level that will not drop off in the near future,” said James J. Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac. “April was the first month in the history of our report with an annual decrease in U.S. foreclosure activity. Secondly, bank repossessions, or REOs, hit a record monthly high for the report even while default notices dropped substantially on a monthly and annual basis.”

“We expect a similar pattern to continue for most of this year,” Saccacio said, “with the overall numbers staying at a high level and ripples of activity hitting the various stages of the foreclosure process as lenders systematically work through the backlog of distressed properties.”

California, Florida, Michigan, Illinois, and Nevada foreclosures account for more than 50 percent of the nation’s total filings. Nevada leads the pack with one in every 69 homes receiving a foreclosure filing in April.

If you are facing a foreclosure filing or bankruptcy, contact the New Orleans bankruptcy attorneys of Kervin & Young, LLC, at 504-599-5906.

Six Flags Inc., the New York City-based operator of the amusement parks of the same name, announced their emergence from Chapter 11 bankruptcy Monday.

The company originally filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in June 2009, citing an inability to refinance its heavy debt burden, which amounted to about $2.4 billion.

Six Flags Inc. will now be known as Six Flags Entertainment Corp., in cooperation with $725 million in equity from a new shareholders group headed by Stark Investments of St. Francis.

“This reorganization constitutes the final step in the repositioning of Six Flags globally,” Six Flags St. Louis Park president David Roemer said in a statement. “While the day-to-day operations of our park were never impacted, it’s very exciting to envision a future that will allow us to rapidly grow and expand the array of services and entertainment for every single guest.”

“Investing in the infrastructure of our park will also remain a top priority,” he said. “For Six Flags St. Louis, that means continuing to improve and upgrade all elements of the park and planning for new rides, attractions and special events over the next several years, including of course our highly anticipated 50th anniversary season in 2011.”

These large businesses are only able to emerge from bankruptcy due to the skilled handling of their financial and legal needs. If you are facing financial difficulty or looking for information on filing for bankruptcy, contact the New Orleans bankruptcy attorneys of Kervin & Young, LLC, at 504-599-5906.

RealtyTrac Inc., a California-based financial tracking firm, reported last week that one in 465 homes in the Houston, TX, area had been foreclosed on in March. This number represents a 29 percent increase from foreclosure numbers in February and a 53 percent increase from March of 2009.

Nationwide numbers follow the same trend. One in 352 homes across the United States received a foreclosure filing in March. These 367,056 properties denote a 20 percent increase compared to February’s foreclosures and an 8 percent increase compared to March last year. RealtyTrac’s U.S. Foreclosure Market Report states that this is the largest number of foreclosures they have tracked since January of 2005.

“Foreclosure activity in the first quarter of 2010 followed a very similar pattern to what we saw in the first quarter of 2009: A shallow trough in January and February followed by a substantial spike in March,” said James Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac.

This substantial spike in March has been represented by the final stages of foreclosures in previous years. This year the spike is represented by an aberrant 9 percent quarterly increase in bank repossessions as opposed to the 13 percent quarterly decrease in repossessions seen at this time in previous years.

If you are facing the prospect of a foreclosure filing and need financial advice and legal counsel in how to proceed with a bankruptcy filing, call the New Orleans foreclosure attorneys of Kervin & Young, LLC, at 504-599-5906.

General contractor Brian M. Marshall, who has founded companies such as Fireline Restoration Inc., its successor Initech Restoration Inc., Marshall Aviation LLC, Marshall Investments LLC, and several others, has requested that his latest bankruptcies be dismissed or converted to liquidation under Chapter 7 following a $691,000 loss in equity by Initech.

Marshall has been trying to pay off debts since November of last year, when the Securities and Exchange Commission’s reported that Marshall had created a “fantasy land of fraud” to increase share prices for his various companies. Branch Banking & Trust Co., one of his many lenders, has filed lawsuits to seize real estate and property of Marshall’s amounting to the $21 million he owes in loans. Court records show that BB&T has seized a 45-foot SeaRay and is looking to repossess several of his houses and a Porsche, Ferrari, Bentley, and Land Rover. Marshall’s Gulfstream jet was repossessed by another lender last year.

If you need legal advice regarding filing for Chapter 13 or Chapter 7 bankruptcy, and want to know how to prevent repossession of your property,  contact the New Orleans bankruptcy attorneys of Kervin & Young, LLC, at 504-599-5906.