Bankr. No.:
02-40459
Chapter:
7
Date of Decision:
December 3, 2002
Issue:
(1) Whether each joint debtor is entitled to clam a $20,000 cash value in life insurance exempt? (2) Whether the debtors had properly declared exempt an annuity under South Dakota law where the annuity was not in payment status?
Ruling:
(1) The joint debtors could only claim up to $20,000 total exempt under the plain language of S.D.C.L. § 58-12-4. (2) State law did not require the annuity to be in payment status to be declared exempt, but S.D.C.L. § 58-13-8 nonetheless limited the amount that could be declared exempt as discussed in In re McGruder, Bankr. No 00-30094, slip op. at 14 (Bankr. D.S.D. August 14, 2001).
Full Bankruptcy Court Decision:
