Application for Pro Hac Vice (effective February 1, 2019)

Revised: 
Tuesday, December 1, 2020

INSTRUCTIONS FOR PRO HAC VICE ADMISSION (U.S. Bankruptcy Court)

As provided by B.L.R. 1001-2(a) and Civil L.R. 11-3, an attorney who is not a member of the Bar of the Northern District of California, but who is an active member in good standing of the bar of another United States court or of the highest court of another state or the District of Columbia, may appear in an action in this District after he or she has been admitted to practice pro hac vice.  Attorneys wishing to appear pro hac vice must comply with Civil L.R. 11-3 and the following procedures.

For your convenience, an Application for Admission of Attorney Pro Hac Vice and a Proposed Order Granting Application for Admission of Attorney Pro Hac Vice are attached below.  These forms may be completed and printed directly from this website.

1. Complete the Application for Admission of Attorney Pro Hac Vice in its entirety.  Please note that your signature on the Application certifies on oath that you have complied with each of the admission requirements delineated on the Application and that you will abide by the conditions of admission described in Civil L.R. 11-3.  Along with your Application include a true and correct copy of the certificate of good standing or similar official document as required by Civil L.R. 11-3.

2. Complete the Proposed Order Granting Application for Admission of Attorney Pro Hac Vice

3. File the Application for Admission of Attorney Pro Hac Vice in the bankruptcy case in which you want to be admitted pro hac vice.  You may file the Application either electronically via CM/ECF or on paper.

Filing an Application Electronically via PACER

Log into PACER using the applicant attorney’s upgraded PACER account.

Select “Maintenance” and then “Attorney Admissions/E-File Registration.” For Court Type select “U.S. Bankruptcy Courts” and for Court select “California Northern Bankruptcy Court,” then click “Next.”

On the screen “What would you like to apply/register for?” select “Pro Hac Vice.”

Complete the registration form. At the end of the form click “Submit.” PACER will then notify the Court of the pro hac vice admission request.

Upon approval, the Court will provide the applicant access to a single CM/ECF event to 1) electronically file anApplication for Admission of Attorney Pro Hac Vice, 2) pay the filing fee online and 3) upload a proposed order on the Application. Orders for pro hac vice applications uploaded via CM/ECF must comply with the E-Order Submission Procedure .

The applicant must then go to CM/ECF Attorney Accounts to register for CM/ECF training, or to request a training waiver.

A full access ECF attorney account will be issued after the Application for Admission of Attorney Pro Hac Vice is granted, and the attorney has successfully completed the requisite CM/ECF training, or has been granted a training waiver.

Filing an Application on Paper

Mail or in person deliver to the Office of the Clerk of the Bankruptcy Court an original and a copy of the completed Application and proposed order, a postage-paid, self-addressed return envelope, and payment of the filing fee in the amount of $328.00.  Payment must be in the form of a money order, a cashier’s check or a check drawn on a business account, made payable to “Clerk, U.S. Bankruptcy Court.”  Personal checks and cash are not accepted.  Additionally, if submitted directly at a Clerk’s divisional office intake counter payment by credit card is also acceptable.  Do not send credit card information through the mail.  All payments must be in the exact amount of the fee(s) charged.  The Clerk’s Office does not make change.

If approved, a conformed copy of the Application, signed order and your payment receipt will be returned to you in the postage-paid, self-addressed envelope.  You are responsible for serving a copy of the order upon all other parties to the action.

4. If your Application is rejected, you will be notified by the Bankruptcy Court Clerk.  Your admission fee will be refunded upon written request to the Clerk of the Bankruptcy Court.

5. Following admission, all papers thereafter submitted for filing shall indicate appearance pro hac vice, immediately following the identifying information required by Civil L.R. 3-4 as incorporated by B.L.R. 1001-2(a).

6. Counsel are advised to obtain a copy of the Bankruptcy Local Rules and Civil Local Rules of the Northern District of California, available without charge from any divisional Office of the Bankruptcy Court Clerk, or from the Bankruptcy Court website or the website of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.