Judge Johnson's Chapter 11 Status Conference Checklist

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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