20-80615
The United States Trustee moved to dismiss the Debtor’s bankruptcy under section 707(b) arguing that granting relief would constitute an abuse of chapter 7. After an evidentiary hearing, the court found that the Debtor failed to rebut the presumption of abuse reflected in his Form 122A-2 Chapter 7 Means Test Calculation. In particular, the Debtor failed to demonstrate that his (1) travel expenses to see his out-of-state minor children, (2) vehicle gas and maintenance expenses for his job, and (3) student loan payments constitute “special circumstances” for which there is no reasonable alternative. Because the Debtor requested to convert his case to chapter 13 after the matter was taken under advisement, the U.S. Trustee’s motion was granted, in part, and the case was converted to chapter 13 with the Debtor’s consent.