Johnson v. Home State Bank, 501 U.S. 78 (1991)

By Professor M. Jonathan Hayes, Northridge, CA
Issue: Can “a mortgage lien that secures an obligation for which a debtor's personal liability has been discharged in a Chapter 7 liquidation [be] a ‘claim’ subject to inclusion in an approved Chapter 13 reorganization plan.”

Holding: Yes

Justice Thurgood Marshall wrote the opinion for a unanimous Court.

The debtor filed a Chapter 7 case and received a discharge. Subsequently, the bank began foreclosing on a mortgage held on farm property owned by the debtor. The debtor then filed Chapter 13 listing the debt owed secured by the farm, some . . .

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