United States Seventh Circuit

A bankruptcy court denial of a Chapter 13 plan that would allow debtors to surrender a vehicle to a creditor and pay nothing on account of the difference between the loan's balance and the collateral's market value is affirmed where the court interprets a 2005 amendment to the Bankruptcy Code as giving the creditor the right to an unsecured deficiency judgment after surrender of the collateral in a situation where the debt exceeds the current value of the collateral, unless the loan contract itself provides that the loan is without recourse against the borrower.

Appellate Information

• Argued 06/05/2007
• Decided 07/03/2007
• Published 07/03/2007

Judges

• EASTERBROOK, Chief Judge., Before EASTERBROOK, Chief Judge, and MANION and WOOD, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Seventh Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Marilyn O. Marshall, Chicago, IL, pro se., William T. Neary, Chicago, IL, pro se., David J. Frankel (argued), Sorman & Frankel, Chicago, IL, for Drive Financial Services., Xiaoming Wu (argued), Ledford & Wu, Chicago, IL, for Debtors-Appellants., James J. Haller, Mueller & Haller, Belleville, IL, for National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys.