Joining the Tenth Circuit, the Ninth Circuit also has held that chapter 13 trustees are not paid their fees when cases are dismissed before confirmation. The identical issue was argued on February 15 before the Second Circuit.
In short order, we’ll have either unanimity or a split of circuits. A split will give rise to an issue worthy of a grant of certiorari by the Supreme Court.
Notably, the Ninth Circuit’s opinion on June 12 adopted reasoning in an amicus brief filed in support of the debtor by the National Consumer Bankruptcy Rights Center and National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys.
On an issue where the courts are widely divided, Chief Bankruptcy Judge Brian T. Fenimore of Kansas City, Mo., adopted the so-called estate-replenishment theory to conclude that appreciation in a home.....
Joining what he called the “slight minority of courts,” Chief Bankruptcy Judge Brian T. Fenimore of Kansas City, Mo., decided that the appreciation in the value of a homestead during a chapter 13 case.....