Ransom v. FIA Card Services, N.A.

Bankruptcy: Chapter 13: “means test”: Chapter 13 of the Bankruptcy Code uses a statutory formula known as the “means test” to help ensure that debtors who can pay creditors do pay them. The means test instructs a debtor to determine his “disposable income”—the amount he has available to reimburse creditors—by deducting from his current monthly income “amounts reasonably necessary to be expended” for, inter alia, “maintenance or support.” 11 U. S. C. §1325(b)(2)(A)(i); “the debtor’s monthly expenses shall be the debtor’s applicable monthly expense amounts specified under the National Standards and Local Standards, and the debtor’s actual monthly expenses for the categories specified as Other Necessary Expenses issued by the Internal Revenue Service [IRS] for the area in which the debtor resides.” §707(b)(2)(A)(ii)(I). The Standards are tables listing standardized expense amounts for basic necessities, which the IRS prepares to help calculate taxpayers’ ability to pay overdue taxes; a debtor who does not make loan or lease payments may not take the car-ownership deduction; this Court’s interpretation begins with the language of the Bankruptcy Code, which provides that a debtor may claim only “applicable” expense amounts listed in the Standards. Because the Code does not define the key word “applicable,” the term carries its ordinary meaning of appropriate, relevant, suitable, or fit. What makes an expense amount “applicable” in this sense is most naturally understood to be its correspondence to an individual debtor’s financial circumstances; because Congress intended the means test to approximate the debtor’s reasonable expenditures on essential items, a debtor should be required to qualify for a deduction by actually incurring an expense in the relevant category. Further, the statute’s purpose—to ensure that debtors pay creditors the maximum they can afford—is best achieved by interpreting the means test, consistent with the statutory text, to reflect a debtor’s ability to afford repayment; the vehicle-ownership category covers only the costs of a car loan or lease. The expense amount listed ($471) is the average monthly payment for loans and leases nationwide; it is not intended to estimate other conceivable expenses associated with maintaining a car. Maintenance expenses are the province of the separate “Operating Costs” deduction. A person who owns a car free and clear is entitled to the “Operating Costs” deduction for all driving-related expenses. But such a person may not claim the “Ownership Costs” deduction, because that allowance is for the separate costs of a car loan or lease (U.S. S. Ct., 11.01.11, Ransom v. FIA Card Services, N.A., J. Kagan).

Faillite : Chapitre 13 : test dit des moyens : le Chapitre 13 du code des faillites utilise une formule statutaire connue sous le nom de test des moyens pour aider à s'assurer que les débiteurs pourvus des moyens financiers permettant d'honorer leurs dettes les honorent effectivement. Le test des moyens instruit un débiteur comment déterminer son revenu disponible, soit le montant à disposition pour rembourser ses créanciers, en déduisant de son revenu mensuel actuel les montants raisonnablement nécessaires à son entretien ou à ses obligations d'entretien envers des tiers. Les dépenses mensuelles du débiteur doivent correspondre aux montants spécifiés à ce sujet par les Standards Nationaux ou par les Standards Locaux. Le débiteur peut également déduire ses dépenses pour les catégories intitulées "autres dépenses nécessaires"  telles que détaillées par l'IRS applicables au territoire dans lequel le débiteur réside. Un débiteur qui n'a pas contracté de prêt ou de leasing ne peut pas se prévaloir de la déduction pour possession d'un véhicule automobile. Les frais d'entretien du véhicule font l'objet d'une déduction spécifique, prévue par la rubrique "frais opérationnels".