Judge Shelley C. Chapman

Staff Information

One Bowling Green
New York, NY 10004-1408
Chambers: (212) 668-2301
Courtroom: 623

Courtroom Deputy: Greg White
(212) 284-4029

Law Clerk: Jamie Eisen
(212) 284-4033

Law Clerk: Ryan Lifland
(212) 284-4032

Law Clerk: Stacy Lutkus (08-13555 Lehman Brothers Holdings, Inc.)
(212) 284-4056

Judge Tabs

Chambers' Rules

Unless otherwise ordered, matters before Judge Chapman shall be conducted in accordance with any Case Management Order entered in a pending case and, to the extent not inconsistent, the following practices:

Scheduling

Pursuant to Local Rule 5070-1, a moving party or applicant must contact Chambers to obtain a hearing date prior to filing and serving a motion, cross-motion, application or any other request for relief requiring a hearing. All scheduling requests should be directed to Greg White, Courtroom Deputy, or to the Law Clerk assigned to the case.
Requests for relief requiring a hearing that are filed without first obtaining a hearing date will not be scheduled for hearing on the Court’s calendar.
Parties may not grant extensions of time on briefing without prior consent from Chambers.
Adjournments, other than those requested at the hearing, will be granted only if agreed to by all parties or, after consent is sought and denied, as granted by the Court after a request to Chambers, copied to those parties affected by the adjournment and stating the basis for the request. The moving party must contact the Courtroom Deputy to obtain the adjournment.
Requests for adjournment should be made no later than 12 noon on the business day before the scheduled hearing; requests made after that time will be granted only where good cause exists for the untimely request.
All adjournments must be noticed with the filing and service of a “Notice of Adjournment” prior to the original hearing date. A hearing will not be officially adjourned until the Notice of Adjournment is filed on the Electronic Case Filing (ECF) System.

Orders to Show Cause

In the absence of an emergency, parties must contact Chambers prior to filing an order to show cause. (See Local Rule 9077-1(a)). Counsel should be prepared to submit the following documents for the Court’s review: a copy of the underlying motion, proposed order to show cause (in Word or WordPerfect format only) and a supporting affidavit.
If the request for an order to show cause is granted, the papers must be filed on the Electronic Case Filing (ECF) system. The Court will contact the movant regarding the disposition of the requested order to show cause.

Notices of Presentment

Parties wishing to move by notice of presentment should consult Local Bankruptcy Rules 9074-1 and 2002-2 to determine what matters may be handled on presentment. These rules also describe the notice and filing requirements when presenting a motion or application by presentment. If you have a question regarding whether a matter may be heard on presentment, please contact Chambers.
Motions for relief from stay will not be considered on presentment.
Parties do not need to contact Chambers to schedule a date and time for presentment but do need to contact the Courtroom Deputy for a hearing date in the event there is an objection.
The underlying motion and an electronic version of the proposed order in Word or WordPerfect format should be submitted to Chambers prior to the scheduled date and time for presentment.

Submission of Orders

Proposed orders must be filed as an exhibit to moving papers.
Proposed orders may be submitted either by mail when the courtesy copy is sent to Chambers or by email after a hearing on the matter; submission by email is preferred.
- Orders submitted by mail should contain a hard copy of the order, accompanied by a CD Rom or flash drive containing an electronic copy of the order in Word or WordPerfect format.
- Orders submitted by email should be sent to scc.chambers@nysb.uscourts.gov in Word or WordPerfect format only.
- Proposed orders should not be emailed to individual members of Chambers or the Clerk’s Office, unless you are instructed to do so.
In addition to the requirement above, any proposed orders submitted after the court has ruled must be submitted by email to scc.chambers@nysb.uscourts.gov and contain the following information:
- The name, telephone number and email address of the person submitting the order.
- The case name and the ECF document numbers of the relevant motion papers.
- If the relief was granted by the Court, the cover must contain a representation that the relief was granted and the date on which it was granted.

2004 Orders

Requests for 2004 orders may be submitted ex parte but the Court in its discretion may require notice and a hearing.

Sealing Orders

Requests for filing and maintaining information under seal may be submitted ex parte and must indicate the grounds for sealing. Every proposed order requesting sealing must provide for the movant to unseal or dispose of the confidential information at the conclusion of the matter. Every proposed sealing order must provide, in substance, that it is without prejudice to the rights of any party in interest, or the UST, to seek to unseal the document or any part of it.

Conferences

Requests for conferences should ordinarily be made by letter emailed to scc.chambers@nysb.uscourts.gov, together with a follow-up call to the Courtroom Deputy or the assigned Law Clerk. The letter requesting the conference should ordinarily be filed on the Electronic Case Filing (ECF) System. The letter should include the reason for the conference request and must be no longer than two pages in length.
If a telephonic conference is granted, parties should submit a conference call-in number and passcode to Chambers.

Form and Content of Briefs

Unless ordered otherwise, briefs and motions with embedded argument and citations shall be submitted in text searchable format and include a table of contents, headings, and a table of authorities.

Copies of Pleadings

Parties must provide a hard copy of every pleading, with exhibits, to chambers at the time of service.

"First Day" Motions

Parties wishing to schedule first day hearings in chapter 11 cases should contact Chambers on the date of filing to discuss scheduling of the hearing. Two copies of first day motions should be provided to chambers in advance of the hearing.
It is expected that Debtor’s counsel will have consulted with the United States Trustee in advance regarding all relief to be requested at the First Day Hearing.

Evidentiary Hearings and Trials

Written direct examinations or proffers may be used for evidentiary hearings and trials at the direction of the Court or at the request of the parties, unless the Court orders otherwise.
Unless otherwise provided by the Court, the parties shall exchange pre-marked exhibits prior to trial.

Discovery Disputes

Pursuant to Local Rule 7007-1(b), discovery motions may not be filed until the parties have (a) conferred among themselves to resolve the dispute and (b) participated in a conference with the Court. Parties should contact Chambers to schedule a conference.
Prior to any request for a conference on a discovery issue, the party requesting the conference is required to make a good faith effort to resolve the dispute with opposing counsel consistent with Local Rule 7007-1(a).

Telephonic Appearances

Unless the Court provides otherwise, parties who are located outside of Manhattan who wish to listen to or participate in a hearing telephonically must (a) receive permission from Chambers by sending an email request to scc.chambers@nysb.uscourts.gov and (b) register with CourtCall here. Attorneys seeking to participate must be admitted to the Court or admitted pro hac vice. (See Local Rule 2090-1).

Telephonic appearances are discouraged if counsel intends to make substantive argument. Parties seeking permission to participate telephonically must call Chambers prior to the hearing and should be prepared to provide the following information: Name of party whom the attorney is representing, the motion on which the attorney intends to argue, and the reason that a telephonic appearance is necessary.
Counsel and pro se parties are not permitted to participate telephonically for any hearings of an evidentiary nature, including the examination of witnesses or the submission of evidence.

Miscellaneous

Questions on all other issues should be directed to Chambers, either to the Courtroom Deputy or the Law Clerk assigned to the case.

Calendars

Court Calendar

Opinions

Judge Chapman's Opinions

Profile

Shelley C. Chapman was sworn in as a United States Bankruptcy Judge for the Southern District of New York on March 5, 2010. At the time of her appointment, she was a partner in the law firm of Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP in the Business Reorganization and Restructuring Department, where her practice included the representation of debtors, creditors, and other parties in interest in major chapter 11 cases and out-of-court restructurings.

Judge Chapman received a B.A. with distinction in all subjects from Cornell University in 1978 and a J.D. from Harvard Law School, from which she graduated cum laude in 1981. She served as an editor of the Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Review.

Prior to joining Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP in 2001, Judge Chapman was a partner at Sidley & Austin and served as an Adjunct Professor at Brooklyn Law School in 1985-86. From 2001 through 2007, she served on the Board of Directors of inMotion, a non-profit organization that provides pro bono legal services to indigent women and children in New York City, primarily in the areas of matrimonial, family, and immigration law, serving as Board Chair from 2004 to 2007.

Prior to her appointment, she served on the Executive Committee of the UJA-Federation of New York's Bankruptcy and Reorganization Group and on the Advisory Board of the ABI New York City Bankruptcy Conference, and has been active in Cornell University and Harvard Law School alumni affairs.

Judge Chapman is a Fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy and a member of the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges. She is currently serving on an advisory committee to the ABI Commission to Study Chapter 11 Reform and is the Judicial Chair of the ABI Mid-Level New York City Conference. She also served on the 2012 NCBJ Education Committee.

Southern District of New York

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Judge Shelley C. Chapman

Staff Information

Judge Tabs