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Brian Seefeldt v. Carrie Jo Seefeldt (In re Carrie Jo Seefeldt)

Bankr. No.: 
96-10182
Adv. No.: 
96-1017
Chapter: 
7
Date of Decision: 
June 4, 1997
Issue: 
Whether debts Debtor owed to third party based on a divorce decree were non dischargeable as to her former spouse under § 523(a)(15)?
Ruling: 
While Debtor would be personally discharged from the debts owed to the third parties, her spouse would retain the hold harmless protections that the divorce decree provided him from these debts and the debts would be nondischargeable as to him under § 523(a)(15). The Court did not require specific "hold harmless" language in the divorce decree for the debts to be of the type covered by § 523(a)(15). Further, under §§ 523(a)(15)(A) and (B), Debtor did not meet her burden of proving that she did not have the ability to pay these debts or that the benefits of a discharge for her outweighed the detriment her former husband would suffer if the debts were discharged as to him.
Full Bankruptcy Court Decision: