On August 23, 2019, the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Oregon partially discharged an attorney’s private student loans in an unpublished opinion. NACBA member Richard Parker of Parker, Butte & Lane, P.C. of Portland Oregon argued on behalf of the Debtor.

The Debtor is an attorney who has expertise in indigent criminal defense. She has no medical issues or children. At the time of filing her bankruptcy she owed $198,691.00 in federal loans to ECMC. She reached a settlement with ECMC under the REPAYE program for an affordable monthly payment.

At issue was the private debt owed to the National Collegiate Student Loan Trust (“NC”) in the total amount of $51,821.62 for three loans. Prior to filing, one of the loans matured and upon her default, NC accelerated the other two loans (which would have matured in about 9 years). NC filed a state court collection action against Debtor. Before judgment however, the Debtor filed for bankruptcy and filed an adversary complaint against NC to determine the dischargeability of her student loan debt.

Log In to READ MORE

Please note, in order to view NACBA Member Content, you must sign in and then visit NEWS. If you are not a NACBA member, you may Become a NACBA Member