Timothy R. Kurtz v. Brittany Nicole Williams

Kurtz · United States District Court for the District of Idaho · March 13, 2026 · No. 1:25-cv-00549-BLW

Summary

The United States District Court for the District of Idaho affirmed the bankruptcy court’s order allowing Brittany Nicole Williams to claim Idaho’s motor-vehicle exemption for an unregistered 2020 Kia Sorento. The court held that Idaho law does not require a motor vehicle to be registered to qualify for the exemption under Idaho Code § 11-605(3).

Holdings

  1. An operational but unregistered self-propelled vehicle qualifies as a 'motor vehicle' for purposes of Idaho Code § 11-605(3), because the statute does not condition the exemption on current registration.

Questions Presented

  1. Whether an unregistered vehicle qualifies as a 'motor vehicle' eligible for Idaho's motor-vehicle exemption under Idaho Code § 11-605(3).

Disposition

affirmed

Cases Cited (7)

  • In re George, 177 F.3d 885, 887 (9th Cir.)(followed)
  • Jones v. U.S. Trustee, 736 F.3d 897, 899 (9th Cir.)(followed)
  • Rousey v. Jacoway, 544 U.S. 320, 325 (2005)(followed)
  • Tober v. Lang (In re Tober), 688 F.3d 1160, 1163 (9th Cir.)(followed)
  • State v. Trusdall, 318 P.3d 955, 959-60 (Idaho Ct. App. 2014)(followed)
  • State v. McKie, 417 P.3d 1001, 1005-06 (Idaho Ct. App. 2018)(followed)
  • In re Sanders, 03.1 I.B.C.R. 57, 58 (Bankr. D. Idaho 2003)(disagreed with)

Cited In (0)

No citing cases on record yet.

Court Document

Open PDF
Loading document…