Playing The "Get Out of College Free" Card: Dischargeability of Educational Debts in Chapter 7 Bankruptcy

Abstract

This Comment surveys the case law interpreting the dischargeability of educational debts under § 523(a)(8). Part II sets forth the cases that construed the "educational loan" language of § 523(a)(8) prior to 1990. Part II.A. discusses the 1990 amendment to § 523(a)(8), which added the terms "benefit overpayment" to the statute. Part III.B. then examines the cases that have interpreted the language of § 523(a)(8) subsequent to the 1990 amendment. Finally, Part IV proposes a strategy whereby colleges and universities may navigate the Kafkaesque quagmire of judicial holdings under § 523(a)(8) and attempt to stem the flow of student-debtors who deplete endowment resources by discharging educational debts owing to the schools.