No. 23-615

John Felix Castleman, Sr., et ux. v. Dennis Lee Burman, Chapter 7 Trustee

Lower Court: Ninth Circuit

Docketed: 2023-12-07

Status: Denied

Type: Paid

Response Waived

Tags: bankruptcy bankruptcy-conversion chapter-13 chapter-7 circuit-split debtor-rights homestead homestead-exemption property-rights valuation

Latest Conference: 2024-02-16

Question Presented (from Petition)

Whether, when a debtor in good faith converts a bankruptcy case to Chapter 7 after confirmation of a Chapter 13 plan, the post-petition, pre-conversion increase in value of the debtor's homestead belongs to the debtor (as the Tenth Circuit held in Rodriguez v. Barrera (In re Barrera), 22 F. 4th 1217 (10th Cir. 2022) or the Chapter 7 estate, and is therefore available for distribution to creditors (as the Ninth Circuit held below).

Question Presented (AI Summary)

Whether the post-petition, pre-conversion increase in value of a debtor's homestead belongs to the debtor or the Chapter 7 estate