This matter was before the Court on the Objection to Claimed Exemption (the “Objection”), filed by the Chapter 13 Trustee (the “Trustee”), and the Response thereto filed by Ms. Genevievette Walker-Lightfoot, the above-captioned chapter 13 debtor (the “Debtor”). The Objection pertained to the Debtor’s exemption claim for the proceeds of a legal malpractice cause of action under Md. Code Ann., Cts & Jud. Proc. § 11-504(b)(2).

In reviewing the Objection, the Court observed that a debtor should be able to exempt property under applicable state law and section 522 of the Code by identifying the property and an exemption that properly covers such property on the debtor’s Schedule C. The process should be straightforward and help to facilitate the debtor’s rehabilitation and fresh start. A debtor should not, however, be able to identify just any property as exempt and must, at a minimum, set forth a facially valid exemption on the Schedule C.

The Court thus concluded that section 522(l) of the Bankruptcy Code and Bankruptcy Rule 4003 require an objecting party to establish in the first instance that the Debtor has not properly claimed an exemption by making a prima facie case that the objection should be sustained. A showing that the claimed exemption is facially invalid meets this standard. A debtor then may provide additional evidence to support the validity of the claimed exemption, which if done, leaves the ultimate burden of persuasion on the objecting party.

In the pending matter, the Debtor may in fact be able to identify a proper exemption under Md. Code Ann., Cts & Jud. Proc. § 11-504(b)(2), but she has not yet done so. The Trustee’s objection to the claimed exemption on amended Schedule C is facially valid and sufficient to sustain the Trustee’s initial burden. Given the Debtor’s ability to amend her bankruptcy schedules and the important role played by exemptions in any bankruptcy case, the Court granted the Debtor leave to further amend her Schedule C to properly claim any available exemptions under state law, including under Md. Code Ann., Cts & Jud. Proc. § 11-504(b)(2).