Creditors’ Rights, Receivership, & Finance

Published on August 8, 2023 On July 20, 2023, the Washington Supreme Court decided Merritt v. USAA Fed. Sav. Bank, in which the Court held that a bankruptcy discharge does not trigger the statute of limitations to enforce a deed of trust. The Court ruled in favor of USAA and affirmed the Court of Appeals. The decision provides important lessons for debtors and creditors alike. Gary and Jeanette Merritt (the “Debtors”) opened five home equity lines of credit between 2005

  Federally backed student loans have quietly become a bipartisan issue in Congress. Currently, 45 million Americans owe roughly $1.7 trillion in student loan debt.  The vast majority of student loan debt, 92%, is owned by the U.S. Department of Education. The sheer number of borrowers unable to pay their student loans crosses party lines – it is a nationwide problem. Different relief proposals are being discussed ranging from whether President Biden should sign an executive order forgiving up to

Recently the State Legislature and Governor Inslee enacted the most significant change in the history of Washington’s 120-year-old statutory homestead exemption. Washington’s homestead exemption is codified at RCW 6.13.030. The homestead is the amount of equity in one’s home that may be shielded from judgment collection. For decades in Washington, it has been the same amount regardless of where a defendant resided in the state – $125,000. However, in reaction to two local 2018 bankruptcy cases: Wilson v. Rigby, 909