Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-canb-1_09-ap-01187/USCOURTS-canb-1_09-ap-01187-0/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
John Michael Zito
Plaintiff
Leticia Quintana Zito
Plaintiff
Bank of America, N.A.
Defendant

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IN THE UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY COURT

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

IN RE:

JOHN MICHAEL ZITO, and 

LETICIA QUINTANA ZITO, 

Debtors.

CASE NO. 09-13886-AJ-13

CHAPTER 13

JOHN MICHAEL ZITO, and 

LETICIA QUINTANA ZITO, 

Plaintiffs, 

v.

BANK OF AMERICA, N.A., 

Defendant.

A.P. No. 09-1187

Memorandum re Default Judgment __________

The debtors filed a Chapter 7 petition in 2008 and were discharged in 2009. They then

commenced the above Chapter 13 case and brought this adversary proceeding to stip off the lien

of Bank of America and disallow the Bank’s unsecured claim. The Bank’s default has been

entered.

There is serious doubt that a debtor can strip off a lien in cases like this were the debtor is

not entitled to a Chapter 13 discharge due to a recent Chapter 7 discharge. In re Jarvis, 390 B.R.

600 (Bkrtcy.C.D.Ill.2008); In re Blosser, 2009 WL 1064455 (Bkrtcy.E.D.WI 2009). However,

since there are no binding appellate cases on this issue and since the Bank has not chosen to

contest the complaint, the court will allow the strip of the lien notwithstanding these cases.

However, the court declines to void the Bank’s unsecured claim; the debtors cannot have

their cake and eat it, too. An unsecured claim is generally allowable where a lien is avoided in

Chapter 13 even when there has been a recent Chapter 7 discharge. In re Gounder, 266 B.R.

879 (Bkrtcy.E.D.Cal.2001); In re Akam, 259 B.R. 371 (Bkrtcy.C.D.Cal.2001).

For the foregoing reasons, the court will enter a judgment stripping the lien but declines

to declare that the Bank has no unsecured claim. Final adjudication of that issue will be rendered

Entered on Docket 

February 24, 2010

GLORIA L. FRANKLIN, CLERK 

U.S BANKRUPTCY COURT 

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

Case: 09-01187 Doc# 11 Filed: 02/23/10 Entered: 02/24/10 08:44:55 Page 1 of 2 
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only after a hearing on the debtors’ objection to a proof of claim.

Dated: February 23, 2010

SAlan Jaroslovsky

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge 

 

Case: 09-01187 Doc# 11 Filed: 02/23/10 Entered: 02/24/10 08:44:55 Page 2 of 2