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In re Claire S. Ruff

Bankr. No.: 
04-40353
Chapter: 
7
Date of Decision: 
August 16, 2004
Issue: 
Whether the United States Trustee was entitled to summary judgment on his motion to dismiss Debtor’s chapter 7 case for substantial abuse?
Ruling: 
The United States Trustee was entitled to summary judgment. According to Debtor’s calculations, Debtor had monthly disposable income of $189.48. Debtor, however, failed to take into account the Court’s previous rulings that a debtor may not divert funds into a 401K account that would otherwise be available to pay creditors. Adding Debtor’s $185.00 401K loan repayment to Debtor’s admitted disposable income gave Debtor monthly disposable income of $374.48. This would permit Debtor to pay his unsecured creditors $11,383.15 over a three-year period or $19,471.92 over a five-year period (after allowance was made for estimated attorney fees and the chapter 13 trustee’s fee). Either figure represented a significant portion of Debtor’s unsecured debt of $40,363.10. Thus, the Court concluded Debtor had the substantial ability to pay his creditors.
Full Bankruptcy Court Decision: