Bankruptcy Options for the Small Business Owner
Learn about different bankruptcy options for small business owners. Contact Protect Law Group serving San Diego, Orange, and Los Angeles Counties.
Contact Our SBA Attorneys for Nationwide Representation of SBA and Treasury Debt Problems
Book a Consultation CallIf you have recently received a written notice from the Department of Treasury demanding payment for an SBA loan default you may not know which way to turn. Not only has your SBA debt come back to haunt you but the amount is now up to 30% more than because the Department of Treasury has added oppressive “collection fees.”
You may feel a certain type of paralysis because the federal government is looking to collect more money than you will ever be able to pay back in your lifetime. The first step you need to take is perform a proper investigation and an analysis of your legal defenses, where applicable.
Neither the SBA nor the Department of Treasury needs to go to court and prove their case in front of a jury or judge like a private creditor when it pursues you through the federal agency system. You do not receive your “day in court” to argue your case when the federal government is your creditor. The SBA and Department of Treasury unilaterally decide that you owe the debt. They do not send you any documents that prove you owe the debt and the federal government certainly does not provide you documents that may exonerate you from liability. The SBA and the Treasury may have hundreds of pages of documents related to your case, which you have a right to inspect and review.
To get your day in court, so to speak, you have to figure out what evidence is available and the legal defenses you can assert. An SBA Attorney can conduct such an investigation and advise you of your options. Once you know your options, you can make an informed decision on how to dispute the claimed debt.
Before filing bankruptcy and ruining your credit or taking another path, you should consider having one of our SBA Attorneys to conduct a proper investigation of your federal debt and determine if there are better alternatives.
Contact us today for a Case Evaluation.
Clients executed personal and corporate guarantees for an SBA 7(a) loan from a Preferred Lender Provider (PLP). The borrower corporation defaulted on the loan exposing all collateral pledged by the Clients. The SBA subsequently acquired the loan balance from the PLP, including the right to collect against all guarantors. The SBA sent the Official Pre-Referral Notice to the guarantors giving them sixty (60) days to either pay the outstanding balance in full, negotiate a Repayment (Offer in Compromise (OIC) or Structured Workout (SW)), challenge their alleged guarantor liability or file a Request for Hearing (Appeals Petition) with the SBA Office of Hearings & Appeals.
Because the Clients were not financially eligible for an OIC, they opted for Structured Workout negotiations directly with the SBA before the debt was transferred to the Bureau of Fiscal Service, a division of the U.S. Department of Treasury for enforced collection.
The Firm was hired to negotiate a global Workout Agreement directly with the SBA to resolve the personal and corporate guarantees. After submitting the Structured Workout proposal, the assigned SBA Loan Specialist approved the requested terms in under ten (10) days without any lengthy back and forth negotiations.
The favorable terms of the Workout included an extended maturity at an affordable principal amount, along with a significantly reduced interest rate saving the Clients approximately $181,000 in administrative fees, penalties and interest (contract interest rate and Current Value of Funds Rate (CVFR)) as authorized by 31 U.S.C. § 3717(e) had the SBA loan been transferred to BFS.
Client’s small business obtained an SBA 7(a) loan for $150,000. He and his wife signed personal guarantees and pledged their home as collateral. The SBA loan went into default, the term or maturity date was accelerated and demand for payment of the entire amount claimed was made. The SBA lender’s note gave it the right to adjust the default interest rate from 7.25% to 18% per annum. The business filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy but was dismissed after 3 years due to its inability to continue with payments under the plan. Clients wanted to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, which would have been a mistake as their home had significant equity to repay the SBA loan balance in full as the Trustee would likely seize and sell the home to repay the secured and unsecured creditors. However, the SBA lender opted to pursue the SBA 7(a) Guaranty and subsequently assigned the loan and the right to enforce collection to the SBA. Clients then received the SBA Official 60-Day Notice and hired the Firm to respond to it and negotiate on their behalf. Clients disputed the SBA’s alleged balance of $148,000, as several payments made to the SBA lender during the Chapter 11 reorganization were not accounted for. To challenge the SBA’s claimed debt balance, the Firm Attorneys initiated expedited discovery to obtain government records. SBA records disclosed the true amount owed was about $97,000. Moreover, because the Clients’ home had significant equity, they were not eligible for an Offer in Compromise or an immediate Release of Lien for Consideration, despite being incorrectly advised by non-attorney consulting companies that they were. Instead, our Firm Attorneys recommended a Workout of $97,000 spread over a lengthy term and a waiver of the applicable interest rate making the monthly payment affordable. After back and forth negotiations, SBA approved the Workout proposal, thereby saving the home from imminent foreclosure and reducing the Clients' liability by nearly $81,000 in incorrect principal balance, accrued interest, and statutory collection fees.
Our firm successfully assisted a client in closing an SBA Disaster Loan tied to a COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL). The borrower obtained an EIDL loan of $153,800, but due to the prolonged economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the business was unable to recover and ultimately closed.
As part of the business closure review and audit, we worked closely with the SBA to negotiate a resolution. The borrower was required to pay only $1,625 to release the remaining collateral, effectively closing the matter without further financial liability for the owner/officer.
This case highlights the importance of strategic negotiations when dealing with SBA settlements, particularly for businesses that have shut down due to unforeseen economic challenges. If you or your business are struggling with SBA loan debt, we focus on SBA Offer in Compromise (SBA OIC) solutions to help settle outstanding obligations efficiently.
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