Kevin M Ryan

In June of 2015, I relocated with my family to Mobile Alabama. After 20 years of vacationing on the Gulf Coast, my wife and I decided that the Alabama Gulf Coast was the best place for us to raise our three children. Before relocating to the great State of Alabama, I represented thousands of consumer bankruptcy clients in Northeast Ohio during the course of the past 18 years. I come from a family of attorneys. My father and three brothers are lawyers practicing in the areas of consumer law, business litigation and catastrophic injury and wrongful death matters. I have a wide range of experience during my legal career thus far. I have practiced in the following areas before focusing full time on bankruptcy matters: Probate & Estate Planning, Divorce, Criminal Law, Juvenile Law, Federal and State appeals (criminal & civil cases), Personal Injury, Wrongful Death, and Collection matters. I have jury trial experience and have operated my legal offices on my own for 18 years. I have a substantial amount of experience in most areas that come up in bankruptcy matters. I worked two law-related jobs during law school and attended law school in the evening while supporting my family. I believe I have a unique background to assist people from all walks of life. I enjoy helping others in the course of my law practice and always seek to put my client(s) interest(s) ahead of my own. The practice of law is more than just a job to me. I consider it a vocation to help others in need and I strive to do that on a daily basis.

• Bankruptcy
• Collections
• Foreclosure Defense
• Personal Injury
• Probate
• Real Estate Law
• Consumer Law

• Free Consultation
  We accept debit cards. Credit cards are accepted in limited circumstances, as long as payor is verified as not being a party who is filing bankruptcy. A client cannot pay initial bankruptcy fees using a credit card.
• Credit Cards Accepted
  I am not able to accept client credit card payments for bankruptcy fees unless a person who is not a party to your case uses their own credit card to pay legal fees.
• Contingent Fees
  applies to personal injury, wrongful death and collection matters
• Rates, Retainers and Additional Information
  We guarantee all of our fees. We do not operate on open, running fee agreements in bankruptcy matters unless pre-arranged with client for special matters or complex cases involving litigation. In come cases, creditors can be ordered to pay legal fees for violating certain consumer and bankruptcy laws.

Alabama

Since 2015

Ohio

Since 1998

6th Circuit

Since 1998

licensed real estate sales associate

Jason Will Real Estate

2015 - Current

Kevin Ryan is a real estate sales agent licensed in the State of Alabama and is a principal member of Ryan Realty Group, LLC

President

Ryan Legal Services, Inc.

1998 - Current

Legal practice focused entirely on consumer bankruptcy matters; Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 cases.

President

West Shore Property Management Inc.

1999 - 2008

residential property investment and management company

Cleveland State University

J.D. / Law

1994 - 1997

College of Wooster

B.A. / History

1990 - 1994

Activities: Football, Phi Sigma Alpha

Div. III NCAC All Conference Team ( Defense : Outside Linebacker) 1993; Captain; Most Inspirational Senior Award

College of Wooster Football

1993

National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys (NACBA)

Member

2005 - Current

Q. How long does a creditor have to go after a deficiency judgment in Alabama?

22 August 2015

A: Another issue you may want to have looked into is whether the creditor actually obtained personal service on you before the case proceeded to a judgment. I can't even count the number of times I have discussed this issue with a client in connection with a bankruptcy case where one of their creditors filed a lawsuit and obtained a default judgment after a different party signed for the certified mail containing the summons and complaint, or the process server failed to return the correct paperwork ( or paperwork that was not fully completed or signed). These issues may be grounds to petition the court to vacate the judgment. You should discuss issues of this type with an attorney.

Q. I am in bankruptcy and I make less, can I reduce the amout that I pay biweekly

19 August 2015

A: You should first get together your last 6 months of pay stubs ( husband and wife if this is a joint case), and your most recent federal income tax return. If self-employed or a business owner, prepare a year to date income and expense report. Your attorney will need to review that information as well as your current household budget. Preparing accurate information for your lawyer as far as your current income and household expenses will put you in the best position to address any objections to your motion to modify the Chapter 13 Plan by the Chapter 13 Trustee, or (in rare instances) creditors. You should monitor this information throughout your case and let your attorney know if there are any material changes in your income, earnings and household expenses. Sometimes, a Debtor becomes eligible to convert the case to Chapter 7 and can thereby accelerate the issuance of a Discharge Order ( there are reasons in some cases to stay in Chapter 13, sometimes because certain debts can be discharged in Ch 13 and not in Ch 7; every case presents unique, different circumstances, so again, please discuss these issues with your attorney).

Q. My Ex husband lied about sons age to use him for IRS exemption on Chapter 13 info. What can i do? plan is confirmed.

8 August 2015

A: You should contact the IRS to inform them if your ex-husband was not eligible to claim your minor child for an income tax exemption. The IRS will request a copy of the Court Order which determines which parent can claim the child as a dependent for income tax purposes. If you do not inform the IRS that he improperly claimed the exemption, YOU could be charged additional fees and penalties relative to your filed tax return, which the IRS will consider as being incorrect. You can get more information on this issue at www.irs.gov online.

Q. I live in Alabama. My co-buyer on my Mortgage lives in TN. She declared Chapter 13. I can't afford the payments?

8 August 2015

A: Your first action should be verifying whether you did in fact sign as a co-signer on the promissory note for the home loan. If yes, you can file your own bankruptcy case and pursue a discharge of your liability on the loan. If you live in the property, you may want to discuss other options with a lawyer who handles BOTH ch 7 and ch 13 bankruptcy cases. The answer to your question depends on whether you reside in the home and whether you are interested in trying to keep it.

Q. We filed ch 13 back in March. We have fallen behind again on our mortgage payments again. What can we do?

8 August 2015

A: You should contact your attorney as soon as possible to discuss whether you can file a motion to modify the Ch 13 Plan to include the "Post-petition" mortgage arrears. It may be possible to apply for a loan modification ( go to www.makinghomeaffordable.gov and discuss with a housing counselor from HUD; let your attorney know you are doing this). A ch 13 case can in most instances be voluntarily dismissed, and a new case filed wherein you could add in the new mortgage arrears. Again, always ask your attorney about these options: they vary from case to case.

Q. I received a monthly pension payment from my late husband's company. just rec'd notice, company if filing bankruptcy.

8 August 2015

A: You should contact an attorney who handles E.R.I.S.A (Employee Retirement Income Security Act ) law. The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) is a federal law that sets minimum standards for most voluntarily established pension and health plans in private industry to provide protection for individuals in these plans. The retirement plan may be transferred to the Pension Benefit Guarantor Corp., which is a federal insurance agency that protects pension plans (http://www.pbgc.gov/) Unfortunately, some of your benefits may be reduced or modified in the context of the employer's Chapter 11 case. This is why you should contact an attorney who handles ERISA law. You also may have a filing deadline to prepare and file a Proof of Claim in the Ch 11 case.

Q. If we file chapter 13 do we need to add all the bills and charge cards in or can we keep some out

5 July 2015

A: You are required to list all of your creditors. There is no provision in the U.S. Code or under Alabama law which prohibits you from paying a particular creditor, such as your family physician, orthodontist, etc for continuing services, so long as the payments do not take away from funds which could otherwise be paid to your other creditors. Even if a debt is discharged, you are not prohibited from later paying the creditor ( such as a family member). It is important, however, that you do not pay personal creditors like family members or a business partner ( an "insider") prior to filing a bankruptcy petition. The issue gets too complex to answer in this forum, so it is better that you discuss your situation in more detail with a qualified attorney.

Q. Filed chapter 7 In Alabama and quit paying on house afterwards, how long til we are firced to move

5 July 2015

A: Foreclosures in Alabama are nonjudicial, meaning the lender can foreclosure under a power of sale clause in the mortgage contract without going to court. You may receive various notices along the way, including a notice of sale. While you don't have a right to reinstate the loan in Alabama once foreclosure proceedings begin, you may be able to redeem the property after the sale under certain circumstances. The timing of these events are determined by the lender. Once initiated, the process can take as little as approximately 90 days.

Q. If I filed chapter 7 and serrender a car. But the company never came to get the car. The car was total I'm i entitled t

2 July 2015

A: If the lender's lien on the car was not redeemed in your Chapter 7 case ( see 11 U.S. Code Section 722), then technically it remains attached to the title of the vehicle until they file a an Alabama Form MVT 5-63 ( Application for Releas of Lien). One factual item not included in the question was whether there was an insurance payment to the lender to pay off the lien. It is possible the lender agreed to release the lien as part of acceptance of the insurance settlement, which may have been less than what was owed on the car. Also, check to see if you had gap insurance for the difference between the amount owed and the amount paid by the insurance company. If there was no insurance policy for the vehicle. the lien remains on the car and you would need to contact the lender to negotiate their release of the lien. They may demand that you pay money for the release ( such as their filing costs, salvage value or higher with respect to the vehicle, etc). If you are completely stuck in this situation in terms of bankruptcy law, you can file a Chapter 13 bankruptcy case 4 years after the Ch 7 case was filed ( I am assuming you were issued a Discharge Order in the Chapter 7 case as the basis for this statement) wherein you could "cram down" the amount owed on the car to a very small amount in a Ch 13 plan set up to run 36 months. If you do not have a lot of other debt, and the Plan is confirmed at 100% to unsecured creditors, you can pay the Ch 13 case off early, as soon as you have the payoff amount. The payoff amount will be available at the Ch 13 Trustee's Office in your District approximately 30-60 days after the deadline for creditors to file a Proof of Claim ( as long as the Plan is confirmed before that date). For further information, contact a lawyer who practices in the area of consumer bankruptcy law.