Brandon Pierce v. Collection Associates, Inc.

This appeal concerns a provision of the bankruptcy code, 11 U.S.C. § 522(h), that allows a debtor in bankruptcy to “avoid a transfer of property of the debtor” in certain circumstances where a trustee could avoid the transfer under 11 U.S.C. § 547. The property at issue here, according to debtors Brandon and Nicole Pierce, is $858.98 in wages that Brandon earned from his employer in six pay periods before the Pierces filed for bankruptcy. Collection Associates, Inc., a debt collection company, garnished those wages. All agree that the case comes down to whether a trustee would be precluded…