The 10th Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel affirmed the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Colorado’s ruling in favor of a Montgomery Little client that a criminal restitution debt is not dischargable in bankruptcy.  The panel followed the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Kelly v. Robinson and held that section 523(a)(7) of the Bankruptcy Code prevents a bankruptcy debtor from discharging any restitution award authorized as part of a state court criminal sentence.  The Tenth Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel consists of nine bankruptcy judges from throughout the circuit who sit in three-judge panels to review appeals originating from the U.S. Bankruptcy Courts in Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Wyoming, and Utah.