Effective for cases filed on or after June 22, 2024, the maximum unsecured debt is an amount less than $465,275. The maximum secured debt is an amount less than $1,395,875. Bankruptcy Basics provides detailed information about filing. Bankruptcy Court adopted the final version of the Local Bankruptcy Rules (LBR) originally published for comment on September 16, 2014.
Honorable Whitman L. Holt – Chief Bankruptcy Judge Brian M. Sheehan – Clerk of Court
Non-business filings rose 15.1 percent, from 388,806 in March 2023 to 447,458 in March 2024. Courts, total filings rose to 467,774 new cases, compared with 403,273 cases reported during the year ending March 31, 2023. Use the forms that are numbered in the 100 series to file bankruptcy for individuals or married couples. Use the forms that are numbered in the 200 series if you are preparing a bankruptcy on behalf of a nonindividual, such as a corporation, partnership, or limited liability company (LLC). Sole proprietors must use the forms that are numbered in the 100 series. Seeking the advice of a qualified lawyer is strongly recommended because bankruptcy has long-term financial and legal consequences.
Rules & Policies
Please consult the Judge’s page on the website or contact the Courtroom Deputy for information on remote… The courtrooms in the Weinberger Courthouse are now covered by wireless public internet access. All computers have been removed from the courtrooms.
Judiciary News
Newsletter topics include new Statement of Position (SOP) for UST and Chapter 13 Trustee,… The Court, having considered comments and suggestions provided by the Local Bankruptcy Rules Advisory Committee, implements changes to Local Bankruptcy Rules (c); ; ; ; (a); (b); and (d). Chapter 7 Trustee Guidelines — The standing panel of Chapter 7 Trustees have updated the guidelines for the administration of Chapter 7 cases as of April 20, 2018.
About Federal Courts
- Newsletter topics include new Statement of Position (SOP) for UST and Chapter 13 Trustee,…
- Notice and opportunity for public comment having been given by the Court, General Order 197 has been filed and the…
- After 19 years with the California Southern Bankruptcy Court and a total of 34 distinguished years of service in the United States Courts, Dave Grube, Chief Deputy…
- Transcripts and audio files for hearings after October 1 will be available as instructed on the…
- Other National forms (known as Director’s Forms) are being renumbered; they also are…
Bankruptcy totals for the previous 12 months are reported four times annually. Filings over any 12-month period have increased only rarely since filings peaked in 2010. Bankruptcies fell sharply after the pandemic began in early 2020, despite some early COVID-related disruptions to the economy. Having considered additional comments received, General Order 186-A is amended to adopt revised versions of the Mandatory Chapter 13 Plan (now designated as CSD 1300.1) and the…
News & Announcements: June, 2024
Most Official Bankruptcy Forms are scheduled to be replaced with substantially revised, reformatted, and renumbered versions effective December 1, 2015. Other National forms (known as Director’s Forms) are being renumbered; they also are… A draft Mandatory Chapter 13 Plan having been published for comment on October 28, 2015, and the comments received having been reviewed and considered by the Court. This order adopts a revised version of the Mandatory Chapter 13 Plan (…
The United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of California continues to closely monitor the national and local… The guidelines previously issued have been amended to reflect changing conditions as the court gains experience with mandatory telephonic hearings. Pursuant to Administrative Order 20-3, Subsection 6, the court has developed three new doc-type events for the expedited notice of intended action procedure to…
The Court has revised two CSD forms and created a new form related to the pre-confirmation process in Chapter 13 cases. They are the CSD 1330 Pre-Confirmation Modification form,… The Electronic Proof of Claim (ePOC) program permits proofs of claims to be filed directly from the court’s website.
Transcripts and audio files for hearings after October 1 will be available as instructed on the… The Judicial Conference of the United States has approved increases to fees on the appellate, district and bankruptcy… United States District Court for the Southern District of California seeks applicants for lawyer representatives. If interested, please click here for more information.
The (ePOC) program will create and file or… The United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of California, having considered comments and suggestions provided by its Bankruptcy Advisory Board,… The United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of California, having considered comments and suggestions provided by its Local Rules Advisory… Effective for cases filed on or after June 22, 2024, the Subchapter V debt limit is reduced from $7,500,000 to $3,024,725. These debt limit increases expired on June 21, 2024. This year’s 12-month filing total for the quarter ending March 31 is nearly three-fifths of the total reported in March 2020, when the pandemic disrupted the U.S. economy.
The Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit invites applications from highly qualified candidates for Bankruptcy Judge for the Western District of Washington – Tacoma. This position will be available on or after January 1, 2017. The Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit invites applications from highly qualified candidates for Bankruptcy Judge for the District of Idaho. This position will be available on or after March 18, 2018.
Bankruptcy laws also protect financially troubled businesses. This section explains the bankruptcy process and laws. Most Official Bankruptcy Forms are scheduled to be replaced with substantially revised, reformatted, and renumbered versions. The forms will become effective December 1, 2015. A sophisticated phone scam is targeting bankruptcy filers in several states, using personal information from filings and posing as attorneys to get intended victims to immediately wire money to satisfy a debt.
The United States Bankruptcy Court – Southern District of California has proposed amendments to its Local Bankruptcy Rules. The draft is the product of the court’s Local Rules Committee of practitioners and the Bankruptcy Court’s judges. Though portions of the government are shutdown due to a lapse in funding, all scheduled section 341 meetings will proceed as noticed.
WiFi names and passwords are available in the courtrooms. Thomas H. Billingslea, Jr., Chapter 13 trustee, retires effective November 30, 2023 at the end of the day. We thank Mr. Billingslea for his valued service over many years. His active caseload will be assumed by Michael Koch (pronounced Cook) who… Form CSD 1174 was amended effective December 19, 2023, to correct submission criteria.