Local Rule 2002-1: Notice to Creditors & Other Interested Parties

Rule 2002-1 Notice to Creditors & Other Interested Parties

(a) Notice

(1) Unless otherwise provided in the Bankruptcy Code, the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure, or these rules, whenever the Code or Rules authorizes any act, or authorizes the court to enter an order, "after notice and hearing" or a similar phrase, the party giving the notice shall clearly state in the notice:

(A) The purpose of the notice;

(B) What a party receiving the notice must do in order to object to the action contemplated by the notice and the time within which an objecting party must act; and

(C) That the act may be performed or the court may enter an order without an actual hearing or further notice unless a written objection is timely served and filed.

(2) A notice may be included with a motion in which case the pleading shall be captioned as a motion and notice.

(b) Service of Notice

(1) To Whom Given

(A) "Notice,@ as used in this rule shall mean notice to all creditors, equity security holders, indenture trustees, the debtor, the chairperson of any committee appointed in the case, the United States trustee, and any other parties in interest.

(B) Less inclusive notice may be given if not prohibited by the Code or Rules and specifically allowed by the court or local rules. Notice is appropriate if it reaches all those with a potential good faith objection to the proposed order or action.

(2) By Whom Given Any party seeking an order or other authority based on notice and hearing shall be responsible to give such notice as is required.

(3) How Given If the recipient is a registered participant in the case in which the notice is being filed, the Notice of Electronic Filing (NEF) is service of the notice; provided, however, if the notice filed is to be considered at a hearing scheduled to occur within 48 hours (excluding weekends and holidays) of the filing, then at or before the time of filing, the filer shall serve the notice by separate email upon all recipients entitled to notice who are registered participants, or shall provide such notice by facsimile or by hand delivery. If the recipient is not a registered participant, notice shall be by first-class mail.

(4) Certification of Giving Notice As soon as practicable, a party giving notice pursuant to this rule shall forthwith file as a separate document, or as a text-only entry, an affidavit of mailing or unsworn declaration under penalty of perjury, which shall include a list of all entities entitled to notice and the physical address to which notice was sent, or a designation that the entity is a registered participant in the CM/ECF system in the case. If the notice was given to a Master Mailing List (MML) or Limited Mailing List (LML), the affidavit or declaration shall also state the date on which it was retrieved from the database of the court.

(c) Time Allowed for Objections

(1) The moving party shall provide at least twenty-one (21) days, plus three (3) additional days if required by Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 9006(f), for objections prior to presentation of an order or the taking of an action, unless a different time is prescribed.

(2) A motion for an order reducing the time for making objections to a proposed action may be made and granted after notice for cause shown. Notice of such a motion shall clearly state the reasons supporting the necessity for a reduction of time and that objections may be made to the requested reduction. The objections will be considered by the court at the time of hearing on the motion for the principal relief requested. A motion for an order as to the principal relief requested and for the reduction in time may be combined provided both motions are clearly captioned and the requests separated in the body of the combined pleading.

(d) Mailing Lists

(1) The addressees of notices shall be in accordance with Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 2002(g). Notice required to be given to all creditors is presumed to be appropriate if provided to all entities on an MML or LML retrieved from the database of the court within five (5) days of the notice, and as required by Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure 2002 and 9036.

(A) Master Mailing List (MML)

A Master Mailing List is maintained by the office of the clerk for each pending case. This list is updated in accordance with Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 2002(g). The Master Mailing List is produced and maintained using the matrix provided by the debtor pursuant to LBR 1007-2, requests from governmental agencies, written requests by entities who wish to be added, deleted or have their addresses changed, and proofs of claim.

(B) Limited Mailing List (LML)

A Limited Mailing List is maintained by the office of the clerk and is based on an order of the court. A party desiring that a Limited Mailing List be established in a case shall do so by notice and hearing. The proposed order establishing a Limited Mailing List shall contain a list of each entity to be listed on the Limited Mailing List, with directions, if appropriate, as to classes or types of entities to be added. The order shall also state the scope and duration of the order. Once established, the Limited Mailing List will be maintained by the clerk in the manner provided in subparagraph (A) above.

(C) Changes to Mailing Lists Withdrawal by an attorney from a case is not sufficient for removal of such attorney's name from the Master Mailing List or the Limited Mailing List, however, a formal notice of appearance in a case by an attorney is sufficient to add such attorney to the Master Mailing List or the Limited Mailing List. A written request to receive all notices will be sufficient to add such requesting party to both the Master Mailing List and the Limited Mailing List.

(2) Notice in Non-lead Consolidated or Joint Administration Cases In order to be presumed appropriate, notice given to the MML or LML of a non-lead case that was consolidated or where joint administration was ordered shall include, in addition to the names contained on the MML or LML of the non-lead case, all entities that filed a request for notice in the lead case after the cases were consolidated or joint administration ordered.

(3) A party in interest who wishes to receive all notices, in addition to notices required to be sent to the MML or LML, shall give notice to the MML or LML as appropriate, and file a certificate of mailing as required by sub-section (b)(4) above.

(e) Signing of Orders Where No Objection is Pending

(1) If no objection is made as provided in paragraph (f) of this Rule or if withdrawal of an objection is filed or the objecting party has endorsed the related order, an actual hearing is not required for any "notice and hearing" matter.

(2) The submission of ex parte orders shall be as prescribed in LBR 9013-1(c)(2) & (3).

(f) Objection

(1) A party objecting to an act or the entry of an order contemplated by a notice shall file with the clerk and serve on the moving party a written objection within the time set forth in the notice. The objection shall state briefly the grounds therefore.

(2) If an objection states no grounds, the court may strike the objection on ex parte motion of the moving party. The moving party, however, may make such ex parte motion to strike only after the objecting party fails within seven (7) days to respond to a request by the moving party for a brief statement of the grounds for the objection.

(3) If an objection is filed, the moving party shall promptly request a hearing date from the clerk.

Related Provisions FRBP 2002 Notices to Creditors, Equity Security Holders, Administrators in Foreign Proceedings, Persons Against Whom Provisional Relief is Sought in Ancillary and Other Cross-Border Cases, United States, and United States Trustee FRBP 9006 Computing and Extending Time FRBP 9007 General Authority to Regulate Notices FRBP 9014 Contested Matters FRCP 5(b)(2)(E) & (b)(3) Serving and Filing Pleadings and Other Papers LBR 9013-1 Motions and Orders LBR 9073-1 Hearings 11 U.S.C. § 102(1) Rules of Construction 11 U.S.C. § 350 Closing and Reopening Cases