Individual Debtor
The Conference’s work on bankruptcy for individuals and families — Chapter 7 and Chapter 13, access to counsel, student loans, and debt limits — and the targeted fixes that keep a fresh start within reach for honest but unfortunate debtors.
Where the Conference shapes the law of consumer bankruptcy.
The Individual Debtor Committee examines how bankruptcy works for people rather than businesses — how Chapter 7 debtors can afford a lawyer, when a confirmed Chapter 13 plan may be changed, who is eligible for Chapter 13, and when student loans should be dischargeable. Its reports propose targeted amendments to the Code and flag where the case law has drifted from what Congress intended.
Access to counsel
Letting Chapter 7 debtors pay their lawyers over time, with court oversight.
Chapter 13 plans
Who is eligible for Chapter 13, and when a confirmed plan may be modified.
Student loans
When educational debt should be dischargeable, and the ‘undue hardship’ test.
The full committee
Reports & positions on consumer bankruptcy.
Chapter 7 Attorney’s Fees
Proposed amendments to §§ 708 and 526(d) letting individual Chapter 7 debtors pay their lawyers over time, under court approval.
Read Conferees onlyPostconfirmation Changes to Chapter 13 Plans
How § 1329’s silence on when a confirmed Chapter 13 plan may be modified has produced uneven treatment of debtors — and the fixes proposed.
Read Conferees onlyChapter 13 Debt Limits
The case for making the 2022 unified $2.75 million Chapter 13 debt limit permanent, ahead of its scheduled June 2024 sunset.
ReadWeighing a consumer-bankruptcy provision?
Get the Conference’s non-partisan read — and a direct line for technical assistance on Chapter 7, Chapter 13, and student loans.