## Facts

- Norbert (“Norman”) Majewski incurred substantial medical debt while hospitalized at St. Rose Dominican Hospital.
- Majewski later worked for St. Rose but was unable to repay the medical debt; repayment negotiations failed.
- Majewski informed St. Rose he intended to file for bankruptcy.
- St. Rose terminated Majewski’s employment before he filed any bankruptcy petition.
- After Majewski filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, the Chapter 7 trustee sued St. Rose in an adversary proceeding alleging unlawful employment discrimination under 11 U.S.C. § 525(b).
- The bankruptcy court dismissed the complaint for failure to state a claim; the district court affirmed; the trustee appealed.

## Issues

1. Whether 11 U.S.C. § 525(b) prohibits a private employer from terminating an employee before any bankruptcy petition is filed, solely because the employee stated an intent to file for bankruptcy.

## Decision

- The Ninth Circuit affirmed dismissal of the trustee’s complaint.
- Section 525(b) does not protect individuals who have not yet filed a bankruptcy petition.
- Because Majewski was terminated pre-petition, he was not an “individual who is or has been a debtor under this title,” and the trustee failed to state a § 525(b) claim.

## Legal Principles

- Under 11 U.S.C. § 525(b), the protected status requirement—an individual “who is or has been a debtor under this title”—is satisfied only after a bankruptcy case is commenced by filing a petition.
- Courts may not expand § 525(b)’s coverage to prospective debtors absent statutory language; extending protection to intent-to-file terminations would add words Congress did not include.
- Although § 525(b)(2) references pre-petition insolvency, that provision still applies only if the individual is or has been a debtor in an actual bankruptcy case.
- Analogies to broader anti-retaliation statutes do not control when the Bankruptcy Code provision is drafted in status-based terms rather than participation/opposition terms.

## Conclusion

The Ninth Circuit held that § 525(b) bars private-employer discrimination only against employees who are current or former bankruptcy debtors; it does not reach terminations occurring before a petition is filed, even if based solely on the employee’s stated intent to seek bankruptcy relief.


In re Majewski, 310 F.3d 653 (9th Cir. 2002)