Hawkins, et al. v. Community Bank of Raymore, No. 13-3065 (8th Cir. 2014)
Annotate this CasePlaintiffs, who guaranteed loans for their husbands' company, appealed the district court's grant of summary judgment in favor of Community on their claim under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), 15 U.S.C. 1691 et seq. The court concluded that the text of the ECOA clearly provides that a person does not qualify as an applicant under the statute solely by virtue of executing a guaranty to secure the debt of another. Therefore, a guarantor does request credit and therefore cannot qualify as an applicant under the unambiguous text of the ECOA. Consequently, the court concluded that a guarantor is not protected from marital-status discrimination by the ECOA. The district court did not err in granting summary judgment to Community on plaintiffs' ECOA claim or their ECOA-based affirmative defense. Plaintiffs' argument that the district court erred in striking their demand for a jury trial is moot.
Court Description: Civil case - Equal Credit Opportunity Act. Under the Act, a person does not qualify as an applicant solely by virtue of executing a guaranty to secure the debt of another; as a result, the plaintiffs, who guaranteed loans for their husbands' development company, are not protected from marital-status discrimination by the Act. Judge Colloton, concurring.
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