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ARTICLE · 08 AUGUST 2006

When Is a School Bus Not Just a Motor Vehicle?

Duane Morris LLP
Duane Morris LLP
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Belsome v. Belsome (In re Belsome), 434 F.3d 774 (5th Cir. 2005), the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit was faced with the issue of whether, under Louisiana's exemption statute, a school bus should be classified as: a "motor vehicle," in which the debtor could only claim a $7,500 exemption; or a "tool," which the debtor could claim as completely exempt from the bankruptcy case.

United StatesTransport
Rudolph Di Massa, Jr.,
Rudolph Di Massa, Jr.,
Sommer Ross
Sommer Ross
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The Legal Intelligencer

In Belsome v. Belsome (In re Belsome), 434 F.3d 774 (5th Cir. 2005), the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit was faced with the issue of whether, under Louisiana's exemption statute, a school bus should be classified as: a "motor vehicle," in which the debtor could only claim a $7,500 exemption; or a "tool," which the debtor could claim as completely exempt from the bankruptcy case.

On Dec. 28, in an opinion authored by Judge Fortunato Pedro Benavides, the court held that a school bus qualifies as a motor vehicle. Consequently, the debtor's exemption in the bus was limited to $7,500.

Background

On May 28, 2004, Tessie Belsome filed a voluntary petition for relief under Chapter 7 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana. At the time she filed her petition, the debtor worked as a school bus driver for the Jefferson Parish School System. She drove a 1997 Thomas school bus that she had

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