Welcome to the ILNBlog, Discussing the Northern District of Illinois Bankruptcy Court

This 7th Circuit opinion slipped under my radar, but it affirmed a good series of opinions from local bankruptcy judges regarding the overpayment of government benefits, and their lack of DSO character. One case that I wish I could have back involved a Chapter 7 client who called many years after their bankruptcy to complain that DHS was still coming after them for an overpayment of food stamps. When I called the attorneys for DHS, they explained that they were arguing that the overpayment was a DSO because it was for the Debtor's kids. After quite a bit of research, I eventually dropped the issue and explained to the client that he's out of luck. Not so, according to some recent opinions. But let's look at the statute first. (14A)The term “ domestic support obligation ” means a debt... that is— (A) owed to or recoverable by...a governmental unit ; (B) in the nature of alimony, maintenance, or support ( including assistance provided by a governmental unit ) of suc...