In re Cain
United States Bankruptcy Court Appellate Panel for the Sixth Circuit
513 B.R. 316 (2014)
Andrea Cain (debtor) received a Chapter 7 discharge in February 2008 and filed Chapter 13 five months later; her plan sought to avoid Amerifirst's (creditor) wholly unsecured second mortgage, since her home's $100,800 value was already exceeded by the $106,306.38 owed on the senior mortgage. Federal law made Cain ineligible for a Chapter 13 discharge because of her recent Chapter 7 discharge, and the bankruptcy court denied her lien-stripping motion for that reason after she completed all plan payments. Cain appealed.
Whether a debtor can strip off a wholly unsecured, inferior mortgage lien on her primary residence in a Chapter 13 proceeding filed less than four years after receiving a Chapter 7 discharge.