On October 11th the Court announced proposed amendments to the Local Rules and corresponding Local Rules Forms, which are summarized here. All of those changes, except for the proposed amendments to SC LBR 2016-1(b) regarding Chapter 13 attorneys’ fees, have been adopted and the amended Local Rules will be effective December 1, 2023. In addition to those amendments, the following changes will be made to the Court’s Local Forms and CM/ECF events:
Local Form Changes:
• Statement in Support of Non-Conduit Plan – removed limitation applying to first mortgages.
• Notice of Confirmation Hearing (Chapter 13) – updated to clarify if no response is timely received the Court may enter an order confirming the plan prior to the scheduled hearing date.
• Debtor’s Electronic Noticing Request (DeBN) – updated procedure to automatically enroll debtors in DeBN if they select to activate an account and to clarify that debtors who file petitions electronically are automatically enrolled in DeBN.
• Notice of Mortgage Servicer Change – optional form to file on the case docket to assist the Chapter 13 trustees in directing payments to the correct entity when the loan servicer changes instead of the ownership of the claim transferred.
• Statement of Change for Proof of Claim – optional form to file with the amended proof of claim on the claims register to describe the changes.
• Employment Order – optional proposed order form that includes language provided in former SC LBR 2014-1 making the employment effective from the date of the filing of the application.
• Subchapter V Status Order – form order used by the court to schedule the status conference under 11 U.S.C. § 1188 may now include the following requirements:
Within 30 days of the petition date, Debtor shall remit $1,000 to Debtor’s attorney, and attorney shall turn over such funds to the Subchapter V trustee to be held in trust pending the allowance of compensation and reimbursement of expenses under 11 U.S.C. § 330. Upon good cause shown, Debtor may request that the Court reduce the initial $1,000. Debtor shall include in any proposed cash collateral budget reasonable amounts to be paid to the Subchapter V trustee, which funds shall be held in trust by the Subchapter V trustee pending the allowance of compensation and reimbursement of expenses under 11 U.S.C. § 330. If Debtor is not required to have a cash collateral budget, Debtor and the Subchapter V trustee shall reach an agreement regarding monthly amounts to be remitted to the Subchapter V trustee. If the parties cannot agree, either party may file a motion with the Court.
New CM/ECF Events:
• Subchapter V Status Report – file status report pursuant to SC LBR 2083-1
• Extend Time (Adversary) – file a motion requesting an extension of time to respond to a pleading filed in an adversary proceeding pursuant to SC LBR 7001-1.
• Notice of Contested Hearing – file notice to the Court pursuant to SC LBR 9013-2(c) in lieu of contacting the courtroom deputy about the matter.
• Notice of Change of Mortgage Servicer – file optional local form in Chapter 13 cases.
• Trustee’s Request for Rule to Show Cause for Failure to File Documents/Attend 341 – for chapter 7 and 13 trustees to request an order scheduling a rule to show cause hearing.
• Notice of Hearing-Filing Fee Due – for the Court to generate an order scheduling a rule to show cause hearing for outstanding filing fees.
Pro Se Electronic Filing Changes:
Pursuant to the amendments to SC LBR 5005-4, the Court will no longer accept filings from pro se individuals via email and the prior email address available to pro se individuals will no longer be monitored by the Court. Pro se individuals may submit a petition for bankruptcy relief electronically through the Electronic Self-Representation (eSR) program and may electronically file other documents by uploading PDF files to the Electronic Document Submission System (EDSS). Documents uploaded to EDSS must include the filer’s original handwritten signature to be processed for filing by the Court. Further information on the requirements to electronically file a bankruptcy petition and other documents can be found in SC LBR 5005-4(d) and on the Court’s website beginning December 1, 2023.