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Creditor Recoupment

By Michael L. Cook and Karen S. Park
September 26, 2012

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit recently held that equitable considerations could not prevent a creditor's recouping of amounts owed to it by a Chapter 7 debtor. Terry v. Standard Ins. Co. (In re Terry), 2012 WL 3139364, *4 (8th Cir. Aug. 3, 2012). Reversing the bankruptcy court and the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel (“BAP”), the Eighth Circuit explained that “once a party meets the same-transaction test ' a court should not impose an additional 'balancing of the equities' requirement” on the doctrine of recoupment. Id. Ending a three-year battle in three courts over the sum of $45,316, the court's straightforward ruling resulted in a win for a disability insurer over a disabled individual. In reality, however, nobody won.

What Is Recoupment?

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