Local Rule Rule 6005-1: AUCTIONEERS
Bankr. S.D.N.Y. — General rule
Rule 6005-1 AUCTIONEERS
(a) No Official Auctioneer. There shall be no official auctioneer.
(b) Compensation. Unless the Court orders otherwise for cause, compensation and reimbursement of expenses shall be allowed to an auctioneer for sales of property as follows:
(1) commissions on each sale conducted by the auctioneer at the following rates:
(A) 10% of any gross proceeds of sale up to $50,000;
(B) 8% of any gross proceeds of sale in excess of $50,000 but not more than $75,000;
(C) 6% of any gross proceeds of sale in excess of $75,000 but not more than $100,000;
(D) 4% of any gross proceeds of sale in excess of $100,000 but not more than $150,000;
(E) 2% of any gross proceeds of sale in excess of $150,000; and
(2) reimbursement for reasonable and necessary expenses directly related to the sale, including labor, printing, advertising and insurance, but excluding workers' compensation, social security, unemployment insurance and other payroll taxes. When directed by the trustee or debtor in possession to transport goods, the auctioneer shall be reimbursed for expenditures related thereto. No travel expenses shall be allowed, except as ordered by the Court.
(c) Buyer's Premiums. If a "buyer's premium" is to be sought at any auction there must be disclosure of this intent to the Court prior to the conduct of the auction and prior to the approval of the auctioneer's compensation. With the advance approval of the Court such buyer's premium may constitute the compensation payable to the auctioneer in lieu of other compensation. Otherwise, any buyer's premium shall be treated as part of the sale price that is payable to the estate, unless the Court expressly orders otherwise. No auctioneer be entitled to both a "buyer's premium" and a separate fee unless the Court has expressly authorized such compensation in advance of an auction.
(d) Purchase Prohibited. An auctioneer, or officer, director, stockholder, agent or employee of an auctioneer, must not purchase directly or indirectly, or have a financial interest in the purchase of, any property of the estate that the auctioneer has been employed to sell.
(e) Bond. An auctioneer employed pursuant to section 327 of the Bankruptcy Code must not act until the auctioneer files with respect to each estate, at the auctioneer's expense, a surety bond in favor of the United States, to be approved, and in such sum as may be fixed, by the United States Trustee, which is conditioned upon:
(1) the faithful and prompt accounting for all monies and property that may come into the auctioneer's possession;
(2) compliance with all rules, orders, and decrees of the Court; and
(3) the faithful performance of the auctioneer's duties.
(f) Blanket Bond. In lieu of a bond in each case, an auctioneer may be permitted to file, at the auctioneer's own expense, a blanket bond covering all cases in which the auctioneer may act. The blanket bond shall be in favor of the United States in such sum as the United States Trustee shall fix and shall be conditioned for each estate on the same terms as bonds in separate estates.
(g) Application for Commissions. An auctioneer shall file an application with the Court for approval of commissions on not less than seven (7) days' notice to the debtor, the trustee, the United States Trustee and each committee. No application shall be granted unless the report of sale referred to in Local Bankruptcy Rule 6004-1(f) has been filed.
Comment This rule is derived from Former Local Bankruptcy Rule 41.
Subdivision (b) regarding "buyer's premiums" was added in 2024 to provide a standardized practice for the disclosure of such terms and to ensure that the full scope of auctioneers' compensation is clarified in advance of any auction. The other subdivisions of this Rule were re-designated after new subdivision (b) was added.
Advertisements of auction sales are governed by Local Bankruptcy Rule 6004-1(h).
Subdivision (g) of this rule (formerly subdivision (f)) was amended in 2009 to change the time period from five (5) to seven (7) days. The purpose of the amendment was to conform the time period in this rule to the 2009 time- related amendments to the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure. Throughout the Bankruptcy Rules, as well as the Local Bankruptcy Rules, most time periods that are shorter than thirty (30) days were changed so that the number of days is in multiples of seven, thereby reducing the likelihood that time periods will end on a Saturday or Sunday.