In re Hill

The Hills (plaintiffs/debtors) obtained an increased $250,000 home equity line of credit from National City Bank (the bank) (plaintiff-creditor) just six months after their combined income, listed at $145,000 on an earlier application for the same line, jumped to a claimed $190,000 — though their actual combined income never exceeded $65,000. The bank required only a business-income verification letter, purportedly on an accountant's letterhead but actually signed by someone else, and never questioned the six-month income jump or independently verified the claimed income before filing Chapter 7. The bank sought to except its $250,000 claim from discharge as obtained through a materially false written statement.