Pursuant to LR 3015(a), “[e]ach chapter 13 standing trustee may issue a form chapter 13 plan”. As such, Kathleen A. Leavitt has issued a Chapter 13 Form Plan. Click here to access the Plan form.

The first chapter 13 plan filed in a case shall be numbered Plan #1. All subsequent plans filed in the case shall be numbered consecutively starting with Plan #2.

Pursuant to LR 3015(b), “each chapter 13 standing trustee may issue guidelines for the administration of chapter 13 plans.” As such, Kathleen A. Leavitt has issued general Trustee Guidelines for the cases in which she is appointed as the Standing Trustee. The Trustee may amend these guidelines at any time. Click here for the Trustee’s current guidelines.

Debtors are required to provide many documents to the Trustee during the bankruptcy process. The Trustee has issued the following procedures for turnover of those documents.

Submission – Debtors’ attorneys must submit documents via 13documents.com where documents are electronically transmitted to the Trustee. To arrange access to 13documents.com log-in, visit the 13documents.com web site at www.13documents.com. Attorneys who are not regular filers may, at the Trustee’s discretion, mail, e-mail or hand deliver documents to the Trustee’s office at the address listed in the contact information in the right margin. Debtors who are not represented by an attorney may mail, e-mail or hand deliver documents to the Trustee’s office at the address listed in the contact information in the right margin.

Timing – The Trustee must receive documents no later than seven days prior to the § 341 Meeting of Creditors or confirmation hearing for such documents to be considered. Documents received after that time may not be considered and the hearing may be continued to give the Trustee sufficient time to review the requested documentation.

Required Documents – The Trustee requires the certain documents in each case. Click here to see the Trustee Guidelines IV. Document Process and Requirement which includes the list of documents required to be submitted to the Trustee.

Redaction requirements for documents submitted to this office – The Office of Kathleen A. Leavitt takes care to protect the privacy of debtors. In furtherance of this goal, the Trustee requires that all documents provided to this office be redacted consistent with the requirements of Federal Bankruptcy Rule 9037. Any document provided to this office, in any form, that contains an individual’s social-security number, taxpayer-identification number, or birth date, the name of an individual, other than the debtor, known to be and identified as a minor, or a financial-account number may include only:

(1) the last four digits of the social-security number and taxpayer-identification number;
(2) the year of the individual’s birth;
(3) the minor’s initials; and
(4) the last four digits of the financial-account number.

COVID-19 Temporary Modification to Office Policy regarding redaction of personally identifiable information (PII) –IDs and verification of SS provided to the Trustee for purposes of Section 341 Meeting identification are exempt from the redaction requirements during the time that 341 Meeting of Creditors are held remotely due to the Covid-19 pandemic. These documents are immediately destroyed after verification of the information at the 341 Meeting.

Please Click here to review the Trustee Guidelines – VI. 341 Meeting of creditors for detailed information regarding the § 341 Meeting process.

If you have filed a bankruptcy petition for your client, you are required to accompany and represent him/her at the 11 U.S.C. §341 meeting of creditors. The § 341 Meeting of Creditors is set by the bankruptcy court and conducted by the Trustee’s office as appointed by the United States Trustee. You and the debtor(s) must appear at each § 341 meeting unless the Trustee has previously waived the debtor’s appearance. A debtor’s appearance will not be waived if the debtor fails to timely submit documents to the Trustee’s office, fails to commence plan payments, or fails to file the required Schedules, Statement of Financial Affairs, Form B22C or Plan.

At each § 341 meeting Debtor(s) must bring the following:

1. Original Social Security Card, medical insurance card, pay stub, W-2 form, IRS form 1099, or a Social Security Administration (SSA) Statement; and
2. Government issued photo identification.

Failure to bring the above items may result in the § 341 meeting being continued.

Please request that your client be appropriately dressed when they appear at the § 341 meeting.

Language Interpreter/Special needs request: All § 341 meetings will be conducted in English, unless a translator is requested seven days prior to the § 341 meeting. The translator will be provided free of charge. Click here to obtain the Interpreter Request Form. Send the completed form to the Trustee via the Trustee’s FTP site. Failure to notify the Trustee may result in a delay of the § 341 meeting.

To request a sign language interpreter, or assisted listening device for the meeting of creditors, contact The Office of the Assistant United States Trustee by calling 702-388-6600. Please make the appropriate arrangements no later than 7 business days prior to the meeting.

Please Click here to review the Trustee Guidelines – VII. Confirmation Hearing for detailed information regarding the confirmation process.

Hearings: Confirmation hearings are held every other Thursday*. Please click here to see Confirmation Hearing dates. The trustee’s office reviews cases Monday-Wednesday of each Confirmation week. On Wednesday, the Trustee’s office posts a tentative results calendar on the website. (Click here to see the most recent results calendar.) Thursday afternoon at 1:30, the Duty Judge (what is a duty judge?) will preside in his/her designated courtroom over all cases scheduled for Confirmation Hearing.

If there are no filed oppositions to a proposed plan set for confirmation or all oppositions have been resolved, the Trustee will recommend confirmation of the proposed plan.

*Note: If there is a conflict on the Thursday scheduled for Confirmation Hearings, e.g. holiday, judge schedule, Confirmation Hearings may be held on a different day usually in the same week. All required notices will include the actual date of the Confirmation Hearing.

Trustee’s Opposition to Confirmation and Recommendation for Dismissal – After the § 341 Meeting of Creditors is concluded, the Trustee will file an opposition to confirmation. The Opposition will detail any additional documentation requested by the Trustee, any amendments required in the case, and any additional objections to the confirmation of the Chapter 13 Plan. It is incumbent upon debtor’s counsel to timely resolve all matters listed on the Trustee’s Opposition prior to the confirmation hearing. You should begin resolving such matters immediately after the 341 Meeting of Creditors.

All documents must be provided to the Trustee’s office no later than seven (7) days prior to the confirmation hearing date. All amendments must be filed no later than seven (7) days prior to the confirmation hearing date. Any documents and/or amendments provided or filed after the above deadline will not be reviewed for the pending confirmation hearing and the Trustee will recommend that the confirmation hearing be continued in order to give the Trustee and her staff adequate time to review the documents and/or amendments.

Obtain a Confirmation Hearing Date: The Trustee posts available hearing dates for confirmations on the Calendar/Hearings page. Click here to see available hearing dates. Please use only those dates posted. Do not assume you know future hearings dates. Although confirmation hearings are usually held every other Thursday, if there is a schedule conflict e.g. holiday, judge schedule, there may be a confirmation date which is not a Thursday.

You are required to give 28 days notice (plus 3 days if notice is mailed) of the time fixed for filing objections and the Confirmation Hearing date. You must serve a copy of the plan to the chapter 13 trustee, all creditors and other parties in interest who do not receive copies by electronic filing. All chapter 13 plans must have a Notice of Hearing and corresponding Certificate of Service. Service of the plan is governed by LR 3015(e).

If the plan is filed after the petition, then a Notice of Hearing for the confirmation hearing must be filed, along with the Certificate of Service in order to reflect the correct Plan on the court’s calendar.

Filing a Modified Plan: A request by the debtor to modify a chapter 13 plan pursuant to 11 U.S.C. §1329 shall be filed on the form chapter 13 plan and shall be set for hearing on the court’s calendar on a date and time designated for chapter 13 plan confirmation matters pursuant to LR 9014(b)(1).

All proposed Modified Plans must be accompanied with the following:

1. A budget, filed with the court, showing current employment, income and expenses. If the debtor’s position is that their income and expenses remain the same, then an affidavit or declaration signed under penalty of perjury stating such must be filed with the court.
2. 3 months current paystubs, and verification of any increased or additional expenses, provided directly to the Trustee.

Modified plans will not be reviewed by the Trustee’s Office until the current budget has been filed, and the aforementioned documents have been provided.

Obtain a Confirmation Hearing Date for a Modified Plan: The Trustee posts available hearing dates for plan modifications on the Calendar/Hearings page. To assist the Bankruptcy Court in the management of their calendars, we must monitor the number of hearings for plan modifications. Hence, there is only one hearing date for plan modifications provided. Click here to see available hearing date for plan modifications.

The hearing on the Modified Plan shall be set for hearing on the court’s calendar on a date and time designated for chapter 13 plan confirmation matters. You are required to give 28 days notice (plus 3 days if notice is mailed) the Hearing date. You must serve a copy of the modified plan, or a chapter 13 plan summary, on the chapter 13 trustee, all creditors, and other parties in interest who do not receive copies by electronic filing. All chapter 13 modified plans must have a corresponding Certificate of Service. Service of the plan is governed by LR 3015(f). A Notice of Hearing for the modified plan must be filed and must have a corresponding Certificate of Service

Service of Modification of a Chapter13 Plan is governed by LR 3015(f). Click here for Local Rules.

Starting at 2:00, after Confirmation Hearings, the court will hear other Chapter 13 matters. To obtain a hearing date on matters other than hearings on confirmation and plan modifications, you must file your pleading and choose your hearing date from the U. S. Bankruptcy Court Clerk through the Electronic case filing system.

Motions to Dismiss: All motions to dismiss Chapter 13 cases should be set for 2:00 on the duty judge calendar. If a Motion to Dismiss has been filed in your case, your are required to respond to the motion. If no response is filed or if a response is untimely file, the Court may dismiss the case.

Applications for Compensation and Reimbursement of Expenses: All attorney’s fees and costs must be approved by the Bankruptcy Court pursuant to 11 U.S.C. §330. When preparing an Application for Compensation and Reimbursement of Expenses, it is important to keep in mind, among other things, 11 U.S.C. §330, Local Rule 2016, case law, and all issued Guidelines.

All Applications for Compensation must be accompanied by a detailed accounting including a list of all parties who provided services including each person’s qualifications and hourly rates. Fees and expenses sought must be reasonable for actual and necessary services and must not render the Chapter 13 Plan infeasible.

Motions or Stipulations for Debtor to Purchase Vehicle: Often a Chapter 13 debtor must replace or purchase a vehicle while in their Chapter 13 case. The debtor must have court approval before obtaining credit for the purchase. The following is the recommended procedure for obtaining approval to obtain post petition credit:

The debtor should review his/her budget to determine a monthly payment amount that fits within the household budget. If the debtor is trading in a car on which (s)he still owes a balance, the new payment amount should be approximately the same as the old payment amount or should fit within the debtors current budget.

The debtor should shop and decide on the car for purchase. (S)he should negotiate the purchase with the seller. The contract must be subject to Bankruptcy Court approval. Most dealers are agreeable to include language to that effect.

A stipulation and proposed order should be prepared using the negotiated contract to set forth the terms of the loan. The stipulation and proposed order should be sent to the Trustee for review.

The Trustee will review the purchase by examining the debtors budget and considering the effect the new payment will have on the debtor’s ability to make their plan payments. The Trustee will also consider the year, make and model of the vehicle debtor’s. The trustee will not be receptive to stipulating to approve the purchase of luxury vehicles.

Personal Injury Settlements:  If a Chapter 13 debtor is involved in litigation or settlement negotiations of a personal injury claim, whether the incident for the claim occurred pre-petition or post-petition, court approval is required to proceed and finalize such action.  Under 11 U.S.C.  327, the debtor’s personal injury counsel must obtain court approval to be employed as special counsel.   The attorney must seek court approval of any negotiated settlement agreement or approval to pursue litigation.  Attorneys’ fees incurred for special counsel representation will also require court approval under 11 U.S.C. 330.

Serious consequences may follow if funds related to a personal injury claim are disbursed prior to court approval. The funds, unless determined to be exempt under NRS 21.090(1)(u), will be considered property of the estate, and therefore cannot be disbursed by any party without court approval.

The Trustee maintains case records in computerized form. You may obtain data about your client’s Chapter 13 case through the following sources:

National Data Center (NDC) – www.ndc.org -The NDC offers free access to chapter 13 case information for Debtors Attorneys. They provide daily updates of your portfolio of client cases with easy access to the web site. Click here to register or login.

13Network – The 13Network website is hosted by Bankruptcy Software Specialists, LLC (BSS) which is the Trustee’s Chapter 13 software provider. The site gives you access to information about your cases. You may gain access to this site by completing the 13Network Access Agreement located here and emailing it to chris@las13.com or delivering a copy to the Trustee’s office.

If you are unable to find the desired information on these websites, you may contact the Trustee’s office directly.

You will not have access to documents or case notes in the Trustee’s case software.