March 18th, 2009 by Reed Allmand 
In the case of Haraldson, Steve O. and Betty; In re, (Bankr. S.D. Tex. 2009) a bankruptcy court sustained a debtor’s objection to a creditor’s proof of claim despite the fact that the objection was made at the last minute. The bankruptcy case involved a Dell proof of claim for $1,565 and an assertion that they were a secured creditor with the computer being the physical secured property. On March 28, 2003 the debtor filed for Chapter 13 Bankruptcy and scheduled Dell as an unsecured creditor that was owed $450. The Chapter 13 bankruptcy plan was confirmed on August 12th and afterwards Dell made its secured creditor plan.
Here are the details of the case:
On Aug. 26, 2004, the trustee filed a “Notice of Intent to Pay Claims” in which the trustee stated an intention to treat Dell’s claim as an allowed secured claim. More than four years later, after the debtors had completed their plan payments, the trustee asked the court to dismiss the debtors’ case because the plan did not provide for the full payment of Dell’s claim. The debtors responded by objecting to Dell’s claim.
The bankruptcy court sustained the debtor’s objection saying that Dell was simply an unsecured creditor and that there was no deadline in objecting to creditor claims. For debtors filing for Chapter 13 bankruptcy make sure that you work with your bankruptcy attorney to thoroughly review all creditor claims. Fortunately, there is no deadline to do so.
About Reed Allmand
Allmand's vision is rooted in his own financially precarious childhood in Abilene "My father always had difficulty holding a job and supporting our family, so after my parents divorced when I was 12, my sister and I got jobs to help make ends meet," he recalls. "I remember what it felt like as a child to worry that our car would be repossessed or home foreclosed on."
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