FLMB Student Loan Program Goes Live
Your Tampa Bankruptcy Attorneys can now Modify Student Loans or Reduce Student Loan Debt. Under a new Federal Student Loan Mediation Program we can force you Student Loan Company to Renegotiate your Student Loan Debt into a more affordable payment.
We can Negotiate Subsidized or Unsubsidized Student Loan Debt. Both Private Student Loan Debt and Federal Student Loan Debt are available for the new Student Loan Mediation Program. Under this Student Loan Forgiveness Program we may file an Adversarial Proceeding against your Student Loan Company, effectively filing a lawsuit in your favor to reduce your debt obligation.
Please contact your Tampa Bankruptcy Attorney today to learn more about Student Loan Forgiveness.
UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY COURT MIDDLE DISTRICT OF FLORIDA
THIRD AMENDED ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER PRESCRIBING PROCEDURES FOR STUDENT LOAN MANAGEMENT PROGRAM
The FLMB Student Loan Modification Program effective August 1, 2019 has been announced by The United States Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida.
The new procedures use an on-line gateway for safe communication between borrowers and student loan mortgagees and will facilitate the gatherings in reaching mutually valuable agreements for the payment of student education loans. The Court’s Administrative Order Prescribing Procedures for Student Loan Modification Program, FLMB-2019-1, becomes effective on August 1, 2019.
Third Amended Administrative Order Prescribing Procedures for Student Loan Management Program, FLMB-2019-5
ORDERED
Purpose
The SLM Program generates a forum for both debtors and lenders to examine consensual repayment choices for student loans. The goal of SLM is to facilitate communication and the exchange of info in an effective and transparent way, and also to encourage the parties to consensually achieve a feasible and mutually beneficial agreement under the administrative oversight of the US Bankruptcy Court of the Middle District of Florida.
Definitions. These definitions apply to the SLM Program:
a.Creditor: Any holder, servicer, guarantor, governmental unit, or trustee of an eligible loan.
b. Debtor: Any individual debtor or joint debtor in a case filed under Chapter Seven, 11, 12, or 13 of the bankruptcy code.
c. Document Preparation Software: Document preparation software: secure software on-line program that eases the preparation of the Initial SLM Package by completing the Standard SLM Documents and creating a check-list of required supporting documents. Creditors can customize the supportive documents, applications and types and will specify the requirements for supporting documentation. Creditors can use forms and might change, amend, or update forms as desired when participating in the SLM Program. Debtor’s usage of the Document preparation software ensures that the first submission to Creditor is complete and accurate and ought to expedite Creditor’s review.
d. Eligible Loan: Any educational payment or a loan made, insured, or guaranteed by a governmental unit, made under any program financed in whole or in part by a governmental unit, or any loan which needs to be a student loan on which Debtor is a debtor. Debtor might use the SLM Program to take part in the Department of Education’s rehabilitation, consolidation, or repayment plans, but only as allowed by federal legislation or rules adopted by the Department of Education.
e. IDR Payments: Payments made to the Lender beneath an income driven repayment plan.
f. Initial SLM Package: Standard SLM Documents and supporting documentation as designated by every Lender to initiate the assessment of Debtor’s StudentLoan Repayment Options. Creditors aren’t required to make kinds to take part in the SLM Program.
g. SLM Period: The period that SLM is in effect before its expiration or termination by a court order.
h. Portal: A secure on-line service that allows SLM Documents and communications to be filed, recovered, and monitored between the mandatory Parties. The Portal shall offer access to the Chapter 13 Trustees. The submission of documents to the Portal by Debtors and lenders offers transparency by making information instantly available to parties via a secure online website.
i: Required Parties: Debtor, Debtor’s attorney , Creditor, and Creditor’s attorney(if any).
j: Standard SLM Documents: Industry Standard Forms demanded by Creditors to initiate an overview of Debtor’s Student Loan Repayment Options on almost any Payday Loan.
k: Student Loan Repayment Options: The Complete Range of alternatives available to Debtor on almost any Eligible Loan including, but not restricted to, rehabilitation, consolidation, any IDR program, or settlement. Any consensual rehab, repayment, IDR Plan, or consolidation of an eligible loan must adhere to all regulations and laws promulgated by the Department of Education. Participation from the SLM Program doesn’t ask a creditor to add or modify repayment options.
3 Eligibility. Any Debtor who has an eligible loan and a case pending before the US Bankruptcy Court of the Middle District of Florida might take part in the SLM Program.
4 Chapter 13 Trustees. The Chapter 13 Trustee might participate in SLM if she or he Desires and the involvement is consistent with the trustee’s obligations under the Bankruptcy Code.
5 Participation in SLM. Debtor, Lender, or the Chapter 13 Trustee might initiate SLM at any moment after the start of the bankruptcy case by filing a Notification of participation in SLM. Before submitting The Notice of SLM, Debtors must pay their bankruptcy filing fee in full and complete the necessary Document Preparation Software.
6 Service. Upon submitting the Notice of SLM, the initiating party will serve the Notice of SLM plus A copy of the Order on interested parties and file an evidence of service.
7 SLM Duties . The following duties apply throughout the SLM Period: a. Good Faith Requirement: The Essential Parties shall act in good faith during the SLM Period. Fantastic faith includes, but isn’t limited to, immediately responding to all inquiries throughout the Portal and supplying all the requested documents and information.
a .Deadlines: the required parties must adhere to Deadlines from the SLM Program.
b:Communication through Portal: Throughout the SLM Period, all material communications between the mandatory Parties as well as the Chapter 13 Trustee, if any, will occur exclusively throughout the Portal, unless otherwise allowed by the Court.
8 Automatic Stay – The automatic stay under 11 U.S.C. §, 362 Is modified to ease the SLM Program and also to encourage the mandatory Parties to research consensual Student Loan Repayment Options and also to modify agreements or payment amounts, as required.
9 SLM Procedures. These procedures will apply to the SLM Program
a: Duration: The SLM Period initially will be 180 days from the Notice of SLM, unless otherwise agreed to by the parties or ordered by the Court
b:No Dismissal: Required Parties might not need the dismissal of Debtor’s bankruptcy case as a condition precedent to an agreement reached throughout the SLM Program.
10 Debtor’s Duties in SLM. Debtors duties in SLM include.
a: Submit Initial SLM Package; within 7 days following the earlier of filing the Notice of SLM or the Creditor’s registration on the Portal, Debtor shall upload the debtor’s initial SLM Package utilizing the necessary Document Preparation Software along with a copy of this Order on the Portal, and pay the Portal submission fees directly to the portal provider. Creditor won’t get a note of the submission till the fee is paid.
b: Document Submissions: Upon the creditor petition, Debtor shall promptly provide any additional or corrected document throughout the Portal.
c:- Conclusion of SLM: Within 2 weeks of the date when Creditor and Debtor conclude the SLM process, the debtor must file with the Court a Notice of Resolution, which includes the amount of payment or other conditions agreed by the parties or a notification of any resolution stating that the parties haven’t reached a consensus.
11 Creditor’s Duties in SLM. Creditor’s responsibilities in SLM include.
a: Registration on Portal: No later than 1 month following an opinion of SLM is registered, Creditor and Creditor’s counsel shall register on the Portal. Note: A registration on the Portal by Creditors and their counsel is equally effective as to all Notices of SLM.
b: Acknowledgment of Initial SLM Package: No later than 1 month following Debtor submits a completed Initial SLM Package on the Portal, Creditor shall acknowledge receipt of the Initial SLM Package on the Portal and designate one point of contact along with legal counsel.
c: Process Debtor’s Application: Within 1 month of receipt of the debtor’s initial SLM Package, Creditor shall notify Debtor if any additional or corrected documentation is necessary. Creditor shall determine Debtor’s eligibility for any student loan repayment option within sixty days of the first SLM Package or, if timely requested, receipt of any additional or corrected documentation.
d: Prompt Response to debtor’s additions and Inquiries: Creditor shall promptly review Debtor’s additional or corrected documentation and respond to Debtor’s inquiries through the Portal.
12 IDR Plans in Chapter 13 Cases. If Debtor seeks SLM in a Chapter 13 case and the parties hit or modify the IDR Plan, the following applies:
a: If Debtor’s Chapter 13 Plan hasn’t been confirmed, within 1 month of filing a Notice of Resolution indicating an agreement between Debtor and Creditor, Debtor must submit an amended Chapter 13 Plan that provides for IDR Payments to be paid throughout the Chapter 13 Plan. The Chapter 13 Plan shall classify Loans under Non Standard Provisions.
b. If Debtor’s Chapter 13 Plan has been confirmed, Debtor shall file a motion to modify the confirmed Chapter 13 Plan that provides for a separate classification of the Eligible Loan as well as the IDR Payment.
c. Debtor’s Chapter 13 Plan, or modification to the Chapter 13 Plan, shall provide for Debtor to make all IDR Payments to Creditor throughout the Chapter 13 Plan, subject to any future modifications required under the IDR Plan.
d. The Chapter 13 Trustee shall distribute IDR Payments to Creditor, but shall make no further pro rata distributions to Creditor through the Chapter 13 case.
e. Debtor might seek registration in any IDR Plan in any moment without disqualification because of the pending bankruptcy case or approval of the Court, even when the Required Parties already have agreed on an earlier IDR Plan.
f. Debtor might seek to consolidate eligible loans without the separate permission from the bankruptcy court.
g. Debtor’s Chapter 13 plan should not provide for the release, in whole or part, of an eligible loan without further order of the Court.
13 SLM Fees. Debtor’s counsel may request or charge fees for assisting Debtors in SLM as follows:
a; Reasonably Presumptive Fee: Debtor’s counsel might receive reasonable compensation for all the work involved with the SLM process and might accept a no look, fee in a reasonable amount not to exceed $1, 500.00. This tax must be paid as an administrative expense in addition to costs and penalties incurred in representing Debtor in the bankruptcy case. The $1, 500.00 fee shall include, at minimum, these tasks:
i. Overview of payment options with Debtor
ii. Filing the Notice of SLM.
iii. Preparation of the First SLM Package.
iv. Preparation of any additional forms required through the SLM Program.
v. Submission of all documentation throughout the Portal
vi. Filing other essential pleadings; and
vii. Preparation of settlement documents and proposed orders, if applicable.
b. Annual Re certification Commission: the debtor’s lawyer may cost $250.00 annually to re certify the Debtor’s IDR Plan, if applicable.
C. Additional Compensation: Debtor’s attorney might seek additional compensation by different application attaching contemporaneous time records for exceptional services provided during SLM.
