[20180827]LSB10192_在破产的情况下还清学生贷款应该有多难？.pdf

CRS Legal Sidebar Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress Legal SidebarLegal Sidebari i How Hard Should it be to Discharge a Student Loan in Bankruptcy? August 27, 2018 In recent years, many Americans have found themselves increasingly unable to repay their student loans. Ordinarily, a debtor who cannot afford to pay his debts may potentially “discharge”that is, obtain relief frommany of those debts by filing for bankruptcy. The federal Bankruptcy Code, however, limits the circumstances in which a debtor may discharge a student loan through the bankruptcy process. As explained in greater detail below, a debtor may generally not discharge a student loan in bankruptcy unless he can prove that repaying the debt would impose an “undue hardship” on the debtor and his dependentsa term that many courts have interpreted to permit a discharge of student loans in narrow circumstances only. Several Members of the 115th Congress have introduced a variety of bills in response to criticisms that existing bankruptcy law makes it too difficult for debtors to obtain relief from their student loans. This Sidebar accordingly analyzes the treatment of student loans under existing bankruptcy la