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Starting Dec. 1, the U.S. Supreme Court will consider a student loan case. Lender United Aids Student Funds, Inc. is suing borrower Francisco Espinosa for $4,000 in interest that a lower court told Espinosa he was exempt from paying. United claims that the court’s ruling is illegal and Espinosa still owes the $4,000.

After taking out $13,000 in student loans, Espinosa struggled to repay them and entered into Chapter 13 bankruptcy. After paying $274 a month throughout the five-year repayment period approved by the bankruptcy judge, Espinosa fully paid off his loan and bankruptcy fees. In 1997 the court declared the loan settled, and sent Espinosa an official letter declaring that he was done paying.

Two years later, United began asking Espinosa for the interest, and put a lien on his tax refunds. Espinosa’s lawyer asked the court to hold United in contempt.

Nine years after that, United claimed that the repayment plan was illegal and void because Espinosa never proved undue hardship. Espinosa’s lawyer contends that he did not have to, because United was twice notified of the plan to be approved by the judge and raised no objections.

Throughout its life of appeals and media coverage, the case has raised eyebrows and tempers on both sides of the argument.

NPR reports that a federal appeals court ruled against United, and the judge declared that United’s claim “makes a mockery of the English language and common sense.”

On the other side of the argument, United has some unexpected supporters—students.

An editorial in the Lariat Online, student-run newspaper of Baylor University in Waco, Texas, argues that the Court should rule in favor of United. The editorial writes that if Espinosa is excused from paying the loan, it would set a bad precedent for participants in the American economy.

“Taking personal responsibility for one's actions is a lesson that must be learned by all Americans if a stable economy is the goal,” reads the editorial.

Espinosa insists that he was not trying to renege his responsibility.

"I did want to pay what I owed," Espinosa told NPR’s Nina Totenberg. "I didn't want to get out of it."

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More from the Lariat Online’s Editorial