Skip to main content

§ 553

Harrison v. United States Dept of Agriculture Rural Dev. (In re Harrison)

Ruling
Prepetition setoff payment to U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development was not preferential.
Procedural posture

Plaintiff debtors filed for relief under chapter 7 of the United States Bankruptcy Code and received a discharge in bankruptcy. The debtors filed an action against defendant, the United States Department of Agriculture Rural Development (RD), claiming that a pre-petition setoff payment to their loan from RD was a preferential transfer that was subject to turnover under 11 U.S.C.S. §§ 522 and 547. The parties sought summary judgment.

ABI Membership is required to access the full summary of Harrison v. United States Dept of Agriculture Rural Dev. (In re Harrison) Please sign in if you are already an ABI member, or otherwise you may Become an ABI Member

Consumer opinion summary, case decided on March 13, 2008 , LexisNexis #0408-010

CDI Trust v. U.S. Elec. Inc. (In re Communication Dynamics Inc.)

Ruling
Rejection damages claim was a prepetition claim subject to setoff against prepetition debt owed to debtor.
Procedural posture

Plaintiff liquidating trust filed a complaint against defendant seeking, inter alia: (1) an accounting and turnover of the amounts due under certain notes; (2) to compel defendant to pay the full value of the notes; (3) recovery of damages for defendant's breach of the notes; and (4) a declaratory judgment that defendant had no right of setoff against the notes. The trust moved for summary judgment.

ABI Membership is required to access the full summary of CDI Trust v. U.S. Elec. Inc. (In re Communication Dynamics Inc.) Please sign in if you are already an ABI member, or otherwise you may Become an ABI Member

Commercial opinion summary, case decided on February 21, 2008 , LexisNexis #0308-101

In re Moore

Ruling
Creditor not entitled to relief from stay to exercise alleged right of setoff against debtor spouse's savings account.
Procedural posture

Movant creditor, a credit union, sought relief from stay per 11 U.S.C. § 362 or dismissal relative to a voluntary chapter 13 case filed by debtors, a married couple. Specifically at issue was whether the creditor was entitled to relief from stay to exercise an alleged right of setoff per 11 U.S.C. § 553(a) against debtor wife's separate savings account, by which to recoup liabilities arising by reason of debtors' joint checking account.

ABI Membership is required to access the full summary of In re Moore Please sign in if you are already an ABI member, or otherwise you may Become an ABI Member

Consumer opinion summary, case decided on October 05, 2007 , LexisNexis #1207-012

In re Bergman

Ruling
Creditors not entitled to setoff without establishing pre-existing right or that it owed an enforceable prepetition debt to debtor.
Procedural posture

Before the court in a chapter 12 case was the motion of a claimant for relief from automatic stay.

ABI Membership is required to access the full summary of In re Bergman Please sign in if you are already an ABI member, or otherwise you may Become an ABI Member

Consumer opinion summary, case decided on September 10, 2007 , LexisNexis #1007-081

Brown & Cole Stores LLC v. Associated Grocers Inc. (In re Brown & Cole Stores LLC)

Ruling
Administrative priority claim which arose prepetition was subject to setoff.
Procedural posture

Appellee creditor claimed administrative priority under 11 U.S.C. § 503(b)(9) for the value of goods received by appellant bankruptcy debtor, a grocery store chain, within 20 days of the debtor's bankruptcy, and the debtor claimed a right of setoff under 11 U.S.C. § 553(a). The debtor appealed the judgment of the Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Washington which allowed the administrative claim and denied setoff.

ABI Membership is required to access the full summary of Brown & Cole Stores LLC v. Associated Grocers Inc. (In re Brown & Cole Stores LLC) Please sign in if you are already an ABI member, or otherwise you may Become an ABI Member

Court :
Judge or Jurisdiction information not available
Commercial opinion summary, case decided on August 17, 2007 , LexisNexis #1007-115

Jahn v. U.S. Xpress Inc. (In re Transcommunications Inc.)

Ruling
Payments withheld by creditor for debtor's telephone services were not avoidable to the extent they consituted a setoff for overcharges.
Procedural posture

Plaintiff bankruptcy trustee brought an adversary proceeding against defendant creditor, alleging that a lack of payment by the creditor for the debtor's telecommunications services during the 90 days prior to the debtor's bankruptcy petition constituted a setoff which was avoidable by the trustee pursuant to 11 U.S.C. § 553. The bankruptcy court conducted a trial.

ABI Membership is required to access the full summary of Jahn v. U.S. Xpress Inc. (In re Transcommunications Inc.) Please sign in if you are already an ABI member, or otherwise you may Become an ABI Member

opinion summary, case decided on December 04, 2006 , LexisNexis #0107-022

In re Robinson

Ruling
Court ruled that IRS had right to offset mutual debt related to debtor's prepetition tax liability and rejected argument that plan confirmation extinguished this setoff right.
Procedural posture

Movant chapter 13 debtor objected to the amended claim submitted by claimant IRS. The debtor moved to keep her income tax refunds for two taxable years notwithstanding the IRS'claim that it had a right to set off the refunds against prepetition tax liability. The IRS objected to the motion.

ABI Membership is required to access the full summary of In re Robinson Please sign in if you are already an ABI member, or otherwise you may Become an ABI Member

opinion summary, case decided on May 17, 2006 , LexisNexis #0706-029

In re Delta Air Lines Inc.

Ruling
Motion for setoff was denied since rejection damages under sections 365(g) and 502(g), which arose after filing, could not be set off against a prepetition claim.
Procedural posture

Creditor, a municipal aviation authority, brought a motion for relief from the automatic stay in order to set off under 11 U.S.C. § 553 certain credits in favor of the debtors, an airline and its subsidiaries, against rejection damages under 11 U.S.C. §§ 365(g) and 502(g) stemming from a lease with the aviation authority which the debtors rejected.

ABI Membership is required to access the full summary of In re Delta Air Lines Inc. Please sign in if you are already an ABI member, or otherwise you may Become an ABI Member

opinion summary, case decided on March 23, 2006 , LexisNexis #0506-027

In re Garden Ridge Corp.

Ruling
Former employee of the debtor was denied relief from the automatic stay to effectuate a setoff since the debts in question were not mutual and thus could not be set off.
Procedural posture

Before the court in a chapter 11 matter was the motion, by a terminated employee of debtors'management services affiliate, for relief from the automatic stay under 11 U.S.C. § 362(d) to the extent necessary to set off certain amounts owing from and owed to debtors.

ABI Membership is required to access the full summary of In re Garden Ridge Corp. Please sign in if you are already an ABI member, or otherwise you may Become an ABI Member

opinion summary, case decided on February 10, 2006 , LexisNexis #0406-061

In re Rocor Intl Inc.

Ruling
Setoff was inappropriate where IRS applied postpetition tax refunds to prepetition tax liability.
Procedural posture

A bankruptcy debtor was entitled to refunds for overpaid excise taxes on fuel, but the IRS retained the refunds as a setoff against excise taxes due for heavy vehicle highway use. The liquidation estate of the debtor moved for turnover of the refunds, and the IRS moved for summary judgment.

ABI Membership is required to access the full summary of In re Rocor Intl Inc. Please sign in if you are already an ABI member, or otherwise you may Become an ABI Member

opinion summary, case decided on September 30, 2005 , LexisNexis #0106-097