In Re Edward Schlein and Kay Schlein, Debtors. Edward Schlein and Kay Schlein v. George E. Mills, Jr., Trustee, Florida National Bank

CARNES, Circuit Judge:

Dr. Edward Schlein and his wife, Kay Schlein, debtors in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy case, appeal from an order of the district court that affirmed in part and reversed in part the judgment of the bankruptcy court on certain exemptions they claimed. This appeal requires us to confront the tension between the preemption provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”), codified at 29 U.S.C. § 1144(a), and the state law exemptions relating to “employee benefit plans” that are available to debtors in “opt-out” states under the Bankruptcy Code, 11…