Bankruptcy Rules & Form Changes effective December 2012

From the Massachusetts Bankruptcy Court's Web Site:

NOTICE REGARDING CHANGES TO THE FEDERAL BANKRUPTCY RULES AND FORMS EFFECTIVE DECEMBER 1, 2012

Proposed amendments to Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure 1007, 2015, 3001, 7054 and 7056 will become effective December 1, 2012. The complete text of these rules is available on the U.S. Courts Website:
http://www.uscourts.gov/RulesAndPolicies/rules/pending-rules.aspx

The following is a summary of the changes:

The amendments to Rules 1007 and 2015 are technical. The amendments conform Rule 1007(c) to the amendment to Rule 1007(a)(2) in 2011 and Rule 2015 to the renumbering of section 704(a)(8) of the Bankruptcy Code in 2005.

New Rule 3001(c)(3) provides additional information on claims based on an open-end or revolving consumer credit agreement, such as claims for credit card debts. The creditor would be required to file a statement that provides the name of the entity from whom the creditor purchased the account; the name of the entity to whom the debt was owed at the time of the account holder’s last transaction; the date of the account holder’s last transaction; the date of the last payment on the account; and the charge-off date. Official Form B10, the Proof of Claim form, will be amended effective December 1, 2012 to reflect these additional requirements, but no Official Form is currently planned to contain the information detailed in this new Rule.

Rule 7054 increases the time for a party to respond to the prevailing party’s bill of costs in an adversary proceeding from 1 day to 14 days, and extends the time for seeking court review of the costs taxed by the clerk from 5 days to 7 days.

The amendment to Rule 7056 sets a new default deadline for filing a summary judgment motion. The current rule incorporates Civil Rule 56, which sets the default deadline at 30 days after the close of discovery. Because hearings in bankruptcy cases sometimes occur shortly after the close of discovery, the new default deadline would be 30 days before the initial date set for an evidentiary hearing.
OFFICIAL FORMS CHANGES

Official Forms B7, B9, B10 and B21 will be changed effective December 1, 2012. Copies of the new forms are available on the U.S. Courts Web site:

http://www.uscourts.gov/FormsAndFees/Forms/BankruptcyForms/BankruptcyFormsPendingChanges.aspx

The following is a summary of the form changes:

Form B7 Statement of Financial Affairs is amended to make the definition of “insider” consistent with the statutory definition found in the United States Bankruptcy Code.

Forms B9A through B9I Notices of Bankruptcy Case Meeting of Creditors and Deadlines are amended to remind creditors not to attach the form Notice to any proof of claim or other filing in the case for privacy reasons.

Form B10 Proof of Claim is amended to remind filers of attachment requirements under Rule 3001(c). A previous direction requiring a power of attorney for authorized agents has been removed.

Form B21 Statement of Social Security Number of Taxpayer-Identification Number is amended to remind debtors that this form should be submitted to the court. This form and debtors’ social security numbers or taxpayer-identification numbers are non-public information.