NEW YORK TIMES: In the netherworld of consumer debt, there are zombies: bills that cannot be killed even by declaring personal bankruptcy.
Tens of thousands of Americans who went through bankruptcy are still haunted by debts long after — sometimes as long as a decade after — federal judges have extinguished the bills in court.
The problem, state and federal officials suspect, is that some of the nation’s biggest banks ignore bankruptcy court discharges, which render the debts void. Paying no heed to the courts, the banks keep the debts alive on credit reports, essentially forcing borrowers to make payments on bills that they do not legally owe… (more)
EDITOR: Further indication of the venality of big banks can be read at “Big Banks Are Fined $4.25 Billion in Inquiry Into Currency-Rigging.” When will we send some of the culprits to jail? Unless we do that, fines are viewed as just another cost of doing business. Disgusting, isn’t it?
