Judge Johnson's Chapter 11 Status Conference Checklist

UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY COURT
for the
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

United States Courthouse and Federal Building
280 South First Street, Room 3035
San Jose, California 95113-3099

Stephen L. Johnson
United States Bankruptcy Judge

CHAPTER 11 STATUS CONFERENCE CHECKLIST

The Purpose Of The Status Conference:

  • To review the reasons for the chapter 11 filing
  • To understand the debtor's assets and liabilities; and
  • To understand the debtors strategy for exiting chapter 11

Counsel should expect that the Court will generally set deadlines in each case, including deadlines for filing and confirming a plan of reorganization.

Chapter 11 debtors must file a Status Conference Statement at least 7 calendar days in advance of the hearing. The failure to file a timely Status Conference Statement may be cause for conversion or dismissal of a case and for sanctions against counsel.

  • The Status Conference Statement should discuss the following issues:
  • Nature of operations and factors leading to bankruptcy filing;
  • Debtor's attendance at § 341(a) Meeting of Creditors;
  • Estate's need for professionals (e.g., lawyers, accountants, brokers)
  • Unique issues regarding secured debt, employees, executory contracts, cash
    collateral, existing management and/or equity owners;
  • Financial results from post-petition operations;
  • Litigation status;
  • Compliance with U.S. Trustee's requests (e.g., debtor-in-possession (DIP), Initial Debtor Interview);
  • An outline of the proposed Chapter 11 plan; and
  • A proposed deadline for the filing of a plan and disclosure statement and for
    confirmation.

Complying With The Requirements Of The Bankruptcy Code And Rules:

The Court expects strict compliance with the Code and Rules. Failure to comply with the following
requirements often leads to an early conversion of the case:

  • Attendance at § 341(a) Meeting of Creditors.
  • Cash Collateral. 11 U.S.C. § 363(c)(2) prohibits the use of cash collateral unless the debtor has either the prior consent of each creditor having an interest in the collateral or an order from the Court.
  • Transactions Outside the Ordinary Course of Business. 11 U.S.C. § 363(b)(1) requires prior notice and hearing.
  • Post Petition Taxes. The Court expects all post petition taxes to be paid timely and all required tax returns to be timely filed.
  • Monthly Operating Reports. Bankruptcy Local Rule 2015-2 requires monthly operating reports and tax reports to be filed on the 21th day of each month.
  • Quarterly United States Trustee Fees. 28 U.S.C. § 1930(a)(6) requires a quarterly fee to be paid to the United States Trustee. The amount of the fee will depend upon the amount of disbursements made by the debtor during each quarter.
  • Funds of the Estate. Bankruptcy Local Rule 2015-1 requires all estate funds to be deposited and maintained in a debtor-in-possession (DIP) bank account.
     
File Attachment: 
PDF icon chapter_11_status_conference_checklist.pdf