Source: http://www2.kyeb.uscourts.gov/opin/howopin/MCharles90-00307A91-0013.fandc.html
Timestamp: 2017-04-27 05:17:50
Document Index: 634784143

Matched Legal Cases: ['§1334', '§157', '§523', '§523', '§523', '§523', '§523']

This Court has jurisdiction of this matter pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §1334(b); it is a core proceeding pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §157(b)(2)(I). The standard of proof in an action pursuant to 11 U.S.C. §523(a) is a preponderance of the evidence. See Grogan v. Garner, 111 S.Ct. 654 (1991). Pursuant to 11 U.S.C. §523(a)(2)(A), a creditor who seeks to except a debt from discharge "must prove that the debtor obtained money through a material misrepresentation that at the time the debtor knew was false or made with gross recklessness as to its truth. The creditor must also prove that it reasonably relied on the false representation and that its reliance was the proximate cause of its loss." In re Phillips, 804 F.2d 930, 932 (6th Cir. 1986).
The plaintiff has also established that the actions of the defendant William Eric Charles constituted willful and malicious injury to another entity or the property of another entity, pursuant to 11 U.S.C. §523(a)(6). The "willful" and "malicious" prongs of this subsection are satisfied by demonstrating that the act in question was done intentionally or deliberately and that it necessarily led to injury. See Perkins v. Scharffe, 817 F.2d 392 (6th Cir. 1987). The plaintiff is not required to show that the defendant intentionally sought to harm, but only that the act which resulted in the harm was intentional. There is no doubt that presentment of checks on accounts with insufficient funds, and stopping payment on those checks, were deliberate, intentional acts which necessarily resulted in injury to the plaintiff.
The debt of defendant William Eric Charles to the plaintiff is therefore nondischargeable pursuant to 11 U.S.C. §523(a)(2)(A) and (a)(6), and the plaintiff is entitled to a judgment against him. The debt of defendant Susanna D. Charles to the plaintiff is nondischargeable pursuant to 11 U.S.C. §523(a)(2)(A), and the plaintiff is entitled to a judgment against her.