The Cents of it: Dischargeability and Environmental Claims Under the Bankruptcy Code

Courts have been unable to develop a consistent body of precedent as to the point at which a CERCLA claim arises under the Bankruptcy Code due to the competing policy interests involved. This comment analyzes the current approaches employed by the courts and concludes that the current approaches are inadequate to provide a compromise between the policy objectives of both CERCLA and the Bankruptcy Code. This comment proposes a judicial actual notice standard in conjunction with legislative action to enact an environmental liability exception to the dischargeability provisions of the Bankruptcy Code