Opinion
No. 78 B 384
December 20, 1978
Debts Not Affected by Discharge — Undischargeable Torts — False Representations — Provable Debts
A bankrupt's solicitation of funds for the benefit of a company in which he is the president does not make the debt his debt and thus, a complaint to determine the dischargeability of that debt must be dismissed. The bankrupt solicited a loan from the creditor for the company in which he was president. The creditor initiated this action to have the debt declared non-dischargeable under Section 17a(2) of the Bankruptcy Act as having been obtained by false representations. While the president is the bankrupt in this case, the company has not filed for bankruptcy. Clearly, this complaint cannot be sustained since Section 17a discharges a bankrupt from all of "his provable debts" with some exceptions. In the absence of any allegation that the bankrupt personally guaranteed repayment by the company, the debt is not the bankrupt's and thus is not "his provable debt". Since exceptions to discharge are to be narrowly construed, the bankrupt is entitled to summary judgment and the creditor's complaint is dismissed. See Sec. 17a [§ 523] at § 9226.