Contact: John Hartgen
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CONGRESS SHOULD MODIFY THE CHAPTER 13 “SUPERDISCHARGE” TO ELIMINATE MORE OF THE EXCLUSIONS TO DISCHARGE, ACCORDING TO LATEST ABI QUICK POLL

 
February 28, 2011, Alexandria, Va.— A majority of respondents (52 percent) in a recent ABI Quick Poll said that Congress should modify the chapter 13 “superdischarge” to eliminate more of the exclusions to a discharge for a consumer chapter 13 filing. Forty-four percent of respondents “strongly agreed” that Congress should modify the chapter 13 superdischarge, while 8 percent “somewhat agreed.” 
 
While the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 diminished the extent of the superdischarge in a chapter 13 proceeding, discharges for consumers under chapter 13 remain broader than for those filing under chapter 7. Superdischarges can include the ability to discharge some tort damage claims, untimely filed tax claims, marital settlement debts and others under 11 U.S.C. §1328.
 
Forty-two percent of respondents did not think that Congress should modify the chapter 13 superdischarge to eliminate more of the exclusions to a discharge. Thirty-six “strongly disagreed” and 6 percent “somewhat disagreed” that Congress should modify the chapter 13 superdischarge to eliminate more of the exclusions to a discharge. Five percent did not know or had no opinion on the poll question.
 
ABI members and members of the public were welcome to submit their response to the statement: “Congress should modify the chapter 13 ‘superdischarge’ to eliminate more of the exclusions to discharge.”
 
ABI’s Quick Poll is posted on ABI’s home page, www.abiworld.org. ABI members and the public are invited to respond to a question on a timely bankruptcy or insolvency issue. Visit http://www.abiworld.net/quickpoll/ to access the results of previous ABI Quick Polls.  

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ABI is the largest multi-disciplinary, nonpartisan organization dedicated to research and education on matters related to insolvency. ABI was founded in 1982 to provide Congress and the public with unbiased analysis of bankruptcy issues. The ABI membership includes nearly 13,000 attorneys, accountants, bankers, judges, professors, lenders, turnaround specialists and other bankruptcy professionals, providing a forum for the exchange of ideas and information. For additional information on ABI, visit www.abiworld.org. For additional conference information, visit http://www.abiworld.org/conferences.html.