General Finance Corp. v. Dingledine (In re Dingledine)

118 B.R. 631, 1989 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17201
CourtDistrict Court, C.D. Illinois
DecidedMay 31, 1989
DocketNo. 89-1024
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 118 B.R. 631 (General Finance Corp. v. Dingledine (In re Dingledine)) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, C.D. Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
General Finance Corp. v. Dingledine (In re Dingledine), 118 B.R. 631, 1989 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17201 (C.D. Ill. 1989).

Opinion

ORDER

MIHM, District Judge.

The issue for resolution in this bankruptcy appeal is whether, in the context of a consumer loan transaction, a statement that the debtor had given a security interest in “certain household items” is a sufficient disclosure “by type” of the creditor’s security interest in fishing equipment and a bicycle (and possibly a camera) under the Truth In Lending Act (hereinafter TILA), accompanying regulations and official commentary. This Court answers that question in the affirmative and reverses the bankruptcy court’s ruling to the contrary.

FACTS

On January 20, 1986, Donald L. Dingled-ine, the Appellee in this case, entered into a loan contract with Appellant, General Finance Corporation (hereinafter General Fi-nante). The loan was refinanced on August 29, 1986 and November 16, 1987. Concurrent with the making of the original loan and each refinancing, Dingledine gave General Finance a non-purchase money security interest in certain items of personal property.

In the security agreement Dingledine executed, the security for the loan was described as a “camera, fishing equipment, bicycle, hoses, portable grill, cassette recorder/player, radio, VCR.” In the federal Truth In Lending disclosure statement that General Finance gave Dingledine in connection with the loan, General Finance indicated that it was taking a security interest in “certain household items.”

The items of security listed on the security agreement were selected from an appraisal form. In the bankruptcy court, Dingledine admitted that he and a General Finance representative went over the appraisal form and that he selected the items which were to serve as security. Dingled-ine also acknowledged that, on November 16, 1987, when he refinanced the loan, he was aware that the term “certain household items,” as used in the disclosure statement, referred to the items listed on the security agreement. He was also aware that he was giving a security interest in those items as security for the renewal loan.

Subsequently, Dingledine filed a Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceeding. In that case, he filed a motion to avoid General Finance’s non-purchase money security interest pursuant to § 522(f) of the Bankruptcy Code, 11 U.S.C. § 522(f). When General Finance failed to object to the motion, the bankruptcy court entered an order which set aside General Finance’s security interest in the above-described goods.

General Finance then filed a Complaint to Determine the Dischargeability of the Debt, in which General Finance alleged that its debt should not be discharged under § 523(a)(2) of the Bankruptcy Code, 11 U.S.C. § 523(a)(2). In its complaint, General Finance contended that Dingledine had given General Finance a false financial statement. Dingledine’s Answer to the Complaint included a counterclaim in which he alleged a violation of TILA § 128(a)(9), 15 U.S.C. § 1638(a)(9) and Regulation Z, 12 C.F.R. § 226.18(m). Later, General Finance’s Complaint was dismissed, and the case proceeded on Dingledine’s TILA counterclaim, based on stipulated facts.

Before the bankruptcy court, as well as before this Court, Dingledine contends that § 226.18(m) of the TILA regulations, Regulation Z, required General Finance to disclose the security interest by identifying the security by “item or type.” According [633]*633to Dingledine, the disclosure statement at issue here fell short of the mark because the term “certain household items” used in the TILA disclosure statement would not include fishing equipment, a bicycle, and possibly a camera.

The bankruptcy court found in Dingled-ine’s favor. In that court’s opinion, only items which are used to operate or maintain the household in which a debtor resides fall within the ambit of the terms “certain household items” or “household goods.” Because neither the bicycle nor fishing equipment came within the scope of this test, the bankruptcy court found that the description of the items of security as “certain household items” in the federal disclosure statement was insufficient for TILA purposes.

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Related

In Re Hatfield
117 B.R. 387 (C.D. Illinois, 1990)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
118 B.R. 631, 1989 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17201, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/general-finance-corp-v-dingledine-in-re-dingledine-ilcd-1989.