Kurt E. Austin

UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
In re
KURT E. AUSTIN,
Debtor.
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Case No. 08-00117
(Chapter 13)
Not for Publication in
West’s Bankruptcy Reporter
MEMORANDUM DECISION AND ORDER RE
OBJECTION TO CLAIM OF DEBTOR’S FORMER SPOUSE
The debtor has filed an objection to Claim Number Four, a
proof of claim filed by the debtor’s former spouse, Shaunese
Singleton. 	That claim is for $5,304.80. 	Its two exhibits show
that the $5,304.80 consists of two components:
• 	first, an Affidavit of Arrears filed in the state court
shows a claim of $1,210.00 for arrears in child
support, and,
• 	second, the Decree of Divorce issued by the state court
not only established the obligation to pay child
support of $580.00 per month but also imposed an
obligation to pay Singleton $4,094.80 for reimbursement
of legal expenses incurred by Singleton in the divorce
proceeding she brought against the debtor (the result
The Memorandum Decision and Order below is hereby
signed. Dated: August 22, 2008.
_____________________________
S. Martin Teel, Jr.
United States Bankruptcy Judge
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1 	The Affidavit of Arrears shows that the $1,210.00 child
support arrears includes $260.00 and $290.00 for, respectively,
February and March 2008. 	The debtor filed his petition on
February 20, 2008. 	The debtor, however, has not objected to the
proof of claim on the basis that the arrears claim, in part, was
not a matured claim as of the petition date. 	Specifically, he
has not objected that the claim, to that extent, should be
disallowed on the basis that it is a “claim . . . for a debt that
is unmatured on the date of the filing of the petition and that
is excepted from discharge under section 523(a)(5) of this title”
within the meaning of 11 U.S.C. § 502(b)(5). 	As a practical
matter, the debtor is required to pay the child support arrears,
and Singleton, by reason of filing her proof of claim, appears to
be content to have the debtor pay through his plan (instead of
directly to Singleton) any portion of the $1,210.00 that first
became payable after the date of the filing of the petition.
2
of an award of $5,000.00 in legal expenses less a
credit for $905.20 already paid).
In an apparent effort to clarify that her proof of claim is
indeed for those two amounts, Singleton filed two new proofs of
claim, one for the child support arrears of $1,210.00, and the
other for the legal expense reimbursement claim of $4,094.80.
The chapter 13 trustee has objected to those two new proofs of
claims on the basis that they are a duplicate of the claims
asserted in Claim Number Four, and it is anticipated that
Singleton will not contest that the new proofs of claims are
indeed duplicative of Claim Number Four.
The debtor’s only objection to Claim Number Four is that the
child support arrears stood at only $1,210.00, not $5,304.80, and
that the debtor does not owe more than $1,210.00 as reflected in
the Affidavit of Arrears. 1 	The debtor may not have realized that
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3	O:\TEEL\Austin (Kurt) Mem Decsn & Order re Objn to Ex's Proof of Claim_v2.wpd
Singleton was asserting a claim of $4094.80 for reimbursement of
legal expenses in addition to the claim for child support
arrears. 	Even if the debtor is asserting that he does not owe
the asserted debt of $4,094.80 for reimbursement of legal
expenses, the proof of claim is prima facie correct, and the
debtor has filed no affidavit to rebut Singleton’s claim of
$4,094.80 for reimbursement of legal expenses. 	It is thus
ORDERED that by September 8, 2008, the debtor shall file an
affidavit or affidavits rebutting the prima facie correctness of
Singleton’s claim that she is owed $4,094.80 for reimbursement of
legal expenses, and that if the debtor fails to do so, the
objection to that part of Singleton’s claim will be overruled.
It is further
ORDERED that in the interim, the claim is allowed in the
amount of $1,210.00 with respect to the claim for child support
arrears.
[Signed and dated above.]
Copies to: Debtor; Debtor’s attorney; Chapter 13 Trustee; and
Shaunese Singleton, 2134 Minstrels Way, Fort Mills, SC 29707-7784
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