student loan debt, Student Loans

Biden Administration Cancels Additional $55.6 Million in Student Loan Debt

The Biden Administration canceled an additional $55.6 million in student loans for 1,800 students who were found to be victims of fraud. This additional amount brings the total amount of student loan debt cancelled by the Biden administration to $1.5 trillion. 

Since entering office, President Biden has made it his mission to stand up for the thousands of students who were taken advantage of by for-profit colleges. This most recent effort was focused on students who attended Westwood College, Marinello Schools of Beauty, and the Court Reporting Institute. Previously, the administration had approved loan forgiveness for students who attended ITT Technical Institute, the American Career Institute and Corinthian College. This is the first time the Department of Education has approved loan forgiveness for students attending for-profit schools not including these three.  

student loan debt, Student Loans

Lawsuit Filed Against Betsy DeVos for Failure to Cancel Defrauded Students’ Debt

More than 150,000 student loan borrowers have filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Dept. of Education and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos alleging they are being deprived of student loan debt forgiveness they are rightfully entitled to. The lawsuit accuses the Department of Education of failing to implement an Obama-era regulation known as “borrower defense, ” which allows students to have their federal student loans cancelled if their school misled them or engaged in other misconduct.

The attorney representing the Plaintiffs in the case say, “The law is clear: Students who experienced fraud should not be required to pay back federal loans that should never have been made by the Department in the first place.”

Borrower Defense Applications continue to pour in, but it has been reported that the Dept. of Education has not approved or denied a claim since June 2018.  The majority of the complaints concern “for-profit” schools, of which there are some 7,000 around the country, which take in around 15% of government financial aid.

Last year, a federal judge ruled that DeVos’ delays of the borrower defense protections were unlawful.  Still, the agency continues to neglect the applications.

Click here to read more on this story.

For borrowers who are struggling with student loan debt, relief options are available.  Many student loan borrowers are unaware that they have rights and repayment options available to them, such as postponement of loan payments, reduction of payments or even a complete discharge of the debt. There are ways to file for bankruptcy with student loan debt.  It is important you contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all your options. As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade Garcia McMaken has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade Garcia McMaken website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.

Bankruptcy Law, Credit, Debt Relief, Student Loans, Timothy Kingcade Posts

Surge in Student Loan Debt Cancellation Requests

The Obama administration has received nearly 20,000 applications from Americans seeking to have their student loan debt cancelled on the grounds they were deceived by the universities they attended. The increase has led to the government forgiving tens of millions of dollars for borrowers.

Under a decade-old law, known as the “borrower defense,” borrowers are entitled to have their loans forgiven if they can prove their school used deceptive advertising and recruiting practices. This law had sat dormant for years. However, last year the Education Department, at the urging of student activists, started using the law to cancel loans taken out by former students of Corinthian Colleges. The for-profit chain was liquidated in bankruptcy last year after federal regulators accused it of running advertisements that cited false statistics on the employment status and earnings of graduates.

As of January, the agency had received about 7,500 applications for forgiveness from borrowers owing a combined $164 million.  The agency continues to review applications on a case-by-case basis. It has agreed to cancel more than $27 million in debt for 3,421 borrowers, many of them former Corinthian students.

Click here to read more on this story.

For borrowers who are struggling with student loan debt, relief options are available. Many student loan borrowers are unaware that they have rights and repayment options available to them, such as postponement of loan payments, reduction of payments or even a complete discharge of the debt. It is important you contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all your options. As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade & Garcia, P.A. has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade & Garcia website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.

Bankruptcy Law, Debt Relief, Student Loans, Timothy Kingcade Posts

How Victims of School Fraud Can Apply for Student Loan Forgiveness

This past year, thousands of student loan borrowers have discovered that they can apply to have their student loan debt forgiven. The forgiveness program was enacted in 1994 is called the “borrower defense” or “defense to repayment.” The program is intended to assist students’ whose schools violated a state law during the recruiting process.  However, the vague nature of the program has forced the Education Department to begin drafting new rules that will clarify what is required to prove fraud.

How To Apply

Anyone who has borrowed from the government’s Direct Loan program for any institution is eligible to apply for the forgiveness program. If you wish to apply for the program, visit: https://borrowerdischarge.ed.gov and fill out the online application. Although it states that the application is for Corinthian College borrowers, any eligible student from any college can apply.

The U.S. Education Department has hired a “special master” to review the applications and make recommendations to the agency. Two reports have been issued since and can be found at:

https://www2.ed.gov/documents/press-releases/report-special-master-borrower-defense-1.pdf

https://www2.ed.gov/documents/press-releases/report-special-master-borrower-defense-2.pdf

For borrowers who are struggling with student loan debt, relief options are available. Many student loan borrowers are unaware that they have rights and repayment options available to them, such as postponement of loan payments, reduction of payments or even a complete discharge of the debt. It is important you contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all your options. As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade & Garcia, P.A. has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade & Garcia website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.

Related Resources:

http://blogs.wsj.com/briefly/2016/01/20/student-debt-forgiveness-for-victims-of-school-fraud-at-a-glance/