Dewsnup v. Timm
United States Supreme Court
502 U.S. 410 (1992)
Relevant factsFree
Dewsnup (debtor, plaintiff) defaulted on a debt secured by liens on her farmland and filed Chapter 7 before Timm (creditor, defendant) could foreclose, then petitioned to reduce Timm's undisputedly allowed secured claim down to the farmland's fair market value, which was less than the debt owed; the bankruptcy court, district court, and Tenth Circuit all denied her petition.
IssueFree
Whether a debtor in a bankruptcy proceeding can strip down a creditor's lien on real property to the judicially-determined value of the collateral when that value is less than the amount of debt.