The Judges, Clerk of Court, Chief Deputy Clerk, and staff offer these Select Court Observations on Practice (the “SCOOP”) highlighting common errors and helpful pointers to assist with your bankruptcy work. 

• Disclosure of Post-Petition Retainer in Chapter 11.  Retainer fees received post-petition in a Chapter 11 case must be disclosed upon receipt in accordance with Fed. R. Bankr. P. 2016(b)(2).  Disclosure of a post-petition retainer in a monthly operating report does not meet the disclosure requirements under Rule 2016(b)(2).  Attorneys who fail to properly disclose receipt of a post-petition retainer may be required to disgorge those fees.  Consult Fed. R. Bankr. P. 2016(b)(2); SC LBR 2016-1(a).
• Motions to Value Claims in Chapter 11.  In a Chapter 11 case, unlike in a Chapter 12 or 13, a motion to value a claim under Fed. R. Bankr. P. 3012 must be filed as a separate motion and may not be embedded in the Chapter 11 plan.  Consult Fed. R. Bankr. P. 3012(b) and (c).
• Review of Pleadings Before Filing.  When drafting motions using forms from prior cases, counsel should closely review the motion before filing to ensure that it does not include facts from the prior case or irrelevant material or request relief that is not appropriate.  All pleadings should be carefully reviewed prior to filing even when they are drafted on an emergency basis, such as first day motions in a Chapter 11 case.  Consult Fed. R. Bankr. P. 9011(b).
• Scope of Permission to Appear Remotely.  Generally, when the Court grants a party permission to appear remotely at a hearing, that permission is only granted for that particular hearing date and does not extend to any continued dates for that hearing (e.g., if a party is allowed to appear remotely at an October 1 hearing that gets continued to October 15, the party will usually need to make another request to appear remotely at the October 15 hearing).  Additionally, permission to appear remotely at one hearing does not allow the party to attend other hearings held on the same date remotely (e.g., if a telephonic hearing on a Response to Notice of Final Cure is scheduled for October 1, that does not allow a party to that hearing to attend other hearings on October 1 by phone by staying on the line).
• Incapacitated Debtors and Credit Counseling.  If a debtor is unable to complete a credit counseling course because of “incapacity”, as such term is defined in 11 U.S.C. § 109(h)(4), their power of attorney should not take the credit counseling course instead; rather, they should seek a waiver of the credit counseling requirement due to their incapacity.  Consult 11 U.S.C. § 109(h)(4).