The Supreme Court resolved a split of circuits today by holding that a false statement about one asset must be in writing to provide grounds for rendering a debt nondischargeable under Section 523(a)(2).
The 15-page opinion by Justice Sonia Sotomayor focused primarily on the plain language of the statute and the meaning of the word “respecting.” The opinion was unanimous, except that Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel A. Alito Jr. and Neil M. Gorsuch did not join in a section of the decision where Justice Sotomayor buttressed her conclusion by relying on legislative history surrounding the adoption of the Bankruptcy Code in 1978.
The case pitted courts’ aversion to those who lie against the statutory language and its history. In a sense, the result is akin to Law v. Siegel, 134 S. Ct. 1188 (2014), where the Supreme Court ruled that the bankruptcy court does not have a “roving commission” to do equity. In Law, the high court barred the imposition of sanctions by invading property made exempt by statute, even though the debtor persistently committed fraud.
A ruling the other way would have led to anomalous results. If a smaller lie about one asset could result in nondischargeability, a bigger lie about a debtor’s entire net worth would provide no grounds for nondischargeability unless it were in writing.
While courts may not be favorably inclined toward debtors who lie orally to obtain credit, Congress made a decision in Section 523(a)(2)(B) that a materially false statement “respecting the debtor’s . . . financing condition” must be in writing to provide grounds for nondischargeability of the related debt.
The Case Below
A client told his lawyers that he was to receive a large tax refund enabling him to pay his legal bills. The lawyers continued working, based on the oral representation.
Although the refund was smaller than represented, the client spent it on his business, falsely telling his lawyers that he had not received the refund. The lawyers continued working. Years later, they obtained a judgment they could not collect after the client filed bankruptcy.
Affirmed in district court, the bankruptcy judge held that the claim for legal fees was not discharged. The Eleventh Circuit reversed in a Feb. 15, 2017, opinion by Circuit Judge William Pryor, Appling v. Lamar, Archer & Cofrin LLP (In re Appling), 848 F.3d 953 (11th Cir. Feb. 15, 2017). To read ABI’s discussion of the Eleventh Circuit opinion, click here.
The creditor filed a petition for certiorari, which the Supreme Court granted on the recommendation of the U.S. Solicitor General, who later submitted an amicus brief supporting the debtor, arguing that the Eleventh Circuit was correct, and contending that an oral misstatement about one asset is a statement about “financial condition” that must be in writing before the debt can be declared nondischargeable.
The circuits were split. The Fifth and Tenth Circuit held that a false statement about one asset can result in nondischargeability, while the Eleventh Circuit had joined the Fourth in holding that a statement about any asset must be in writing to provide grounds for nondischargeability.
The justices heard oral argument on April 17.
Another ‘Plain Language’ Opinion
The creditor-petitioner argued that a statement about a debtor’s overall financial condition is the only type of statement “respecting” financial condition that can result in nondischargeability under Section 523(a)(2)(B). According to the creditor, a lie about one asset is not about “financial condition.” Rather, the law firm contended that a lie about one asset falls within the ambit of Section 523(a)(2)(A) and leads to a nondischargeable debt because it is a “false representation.” Under (a)(2)(A), there is no requirement that a “false representation” be in writing before the debt can be nondischargeable.
As is her style, Justice Sotomayor was quick to the point. In the second paragraph of her opinion, she said that the “statutory language makes plain that a statement about a single asset can be a ‘statement respecting the debtor’s financial condition.’” If the statement was not made in writing, she said, “the associated debt may be discharged, even if the statement was false.”
Justice Sotomayor said that the Bankruptcy Code does not define three critical terms: “statement,” “financial condition,” and “respecting.” Only “respecting” was in dispute, she said.
Looking to several dictionaries, Justice Sotomayor said that “respecting” means “in view of: considering; with regard or relation to: regarding, concerning.” At least in the context of the instant case, she said that “related to” does not have a “materially different meaning” than “about,” “concerning,” “with reference to,” or “as regards.” The words all have circular definitions, she said.
In the realm of statutory construction and drafting, Justice Sotomayor said that “respecting” “generally has a broadening effect” and “covers not only its subject but also matters relating to that subject.” She rejected the notion that (a)(2)(B) only refers to overall financial condition, because that interpretation would read “‘respecting’ out of the statute.”
Broadening her opinion further, she said that a statement is “respecting” financial condition “if it has a direct relation to or impact on the debtor’s overall financial condition.”
A narrower interpretation, according to Justice Sotomayor, “would yield incoherent results.” For example, she said that a false statement, such as, “I am above water,” could not result in nondischargeability unless it were in writing, while saying, “I have $200,000 in equity in my house” could lead to nondischargeability. “This, too, is inexplicably bizarre,” she said.
Justice Sotomayor traced the language in the Bankruptcy Code to a phrase first adopted by Congress in 1926, which the circuits consistently interpreted to include even one of a debtor’s assets. Having used the same word in the Bankruptcy Reform Act of 1978, she said that Congress “intended for it to retain its established meaning.”
Justices Thomas, Alito and Gorsuch did not join in the last section of Justice Sotomayor’s opinion, where she grounded the result in legislative history underpinning Section 523(a)(2)(B). She quoted from a 1995 Supreme Court decision citing the legislative history as saying that Congress drafted Section (a)(2) in a manner intended to prevent abuse by creditors who might otherwise trap debtors into making statements that could result in denial of discharge.