In Re Hannon, 455 B.R. 814

Debtors David and Mary Ann Hannon filed a joint Chapter 13 petition on November 22, 2010 listing $495,979 in unsecured debt.
They seek a ruling that joint Chapter 13 debtors who individually exceed 11 U.S.C. § 109(e) debt limits may still proceed jointly if each would be eligible to file an individual petition.
11 U.S.C. § 109(e) sets debt limits for individual eligibility and the statute uses the term 'individual' rather than 'individuals'.
The court considers whether the debt limits can be 'stacked' across spouses in a joint petition or apply per individual.
Authorities from other courts (e.g., Scholz, Werts, Leonard, Bosco, Gatto) have generally held that each spouse must independently meet § 109(e) limits for joint eligibility.
The court finds that, because the Hannon debt totals show both spouses exceed § 109(e) individually, they are not eligible for a joint Chapter 13 petition.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether § 109(e) allows stacking of debt limits for joint filings	Hannon argues each spouse individually qualifies, so joint filing should be allowed.	Debtors contend the statutory language permits joint administration if each spouse would qualify individually.	Denies motion; each debtor must independently meet § 109(e) limits.

In re Werts, 410 B.R. 677 (Bankr. D. Kan. 2009) (debt limits apply to joint filers only if each spouse qualifies individually)
In re Gatto, 380 B.R. 88 (Bankr. M.D. Fla. 2007) (each debtor may claim exemptions separately; joint filing treated as separate estates)