In Re Stein’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

1 district ·

Most-quoted passages

The sentences later courts lift from this opinion, ranked by how many decisions quote each — the parts of the opinion doing the work. These counts are smaller than the citation total above because most of the 11 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “Congress responded to the courts’ disparate application of the good.faith standard — as a means of regulating the amount of payments and the length of Chapter 13 plans — by considering a number of proposals which would have required a good faith effort by a debtor to provide payments to creditors consistent with the debtor’s ability, including a so-called “best efforts test.” H.R. Doc. No. 1195, 96th Cong., 2d Sess. 24 (1980). Instead, Congress adopted the “ability-to-pay” provisions of § 1325(b), proposed by the National Bankruptcy Conference, which provided that the amount that a debtor could reasonably afford to pay would become both a floor and a ceiling for Chapter 13 plan payments. Oversight Hearings on Personal Bankruptcy Before the Subcommittee on Monopolies and Commercial Law of the House Committee on the Judiciary, 97th Cong., 1st Sess. 181-203 (1981-82). It has been commented that: Through this ability-to-pay test, Congress hoped to create a concrete standard which would both eliminate the disparity between the judicial districts and be consistent with the basic consumer credit theory of extending credit based on future income. Silver, The Disposable Income Test: An Attempt Toward Uniformity, 4 Bankr. Dev.J. 221, 225 (1987) (footnotes omitted).”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. In Re Carver

2. “Chapter 13 relief is essentially equitable, and contemplates a substantial effort by the debtor to pay his debts. Such an effort, by definition, may require some sacrifices by the debtor, and some alteration in prepetition consumption levels. Thus, the debtor might reasonably be required to devote to the plan that portion of his income which is not necessary for support of the debtor and his family. The courts may be expected to determine norms for such support, and Labor Department cost of living figures may provide some help. This approach will also permit plans to be confirmed where the debtor does make a substantial effort to pay his debts, even though the payment itself is not substantial.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. In Re Gonzales

3. “The statutory language of § 1325(b) provides little guidance as to the proper scope of inquiry of a bankruptcy court in its determination of whether particular budgeted expenses are reasonably necessary for the maintenance and support of the debtor or the debtor’s dependents. The legislative history of § 1325(b) has been described as ‘singularly vague and unenlightening’. In re Jones, 55 B.R. 462, 465 (Bankr.D.Minn. 1985).”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. In Re Gonzales