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CHANGES IN BANKRUPTCY FORMS EFFECTIVE DECEMBER 1, 2015

Release Date: 
July 16, 2015

Most Official Bankruptcy Forms are scheduled to be replaced with substantially revised, reformatted and renumbered versions effective December 1, 2015, if approved by the Judicial Conference at its September 2015 meeting. These new forms are part of a forms modernization project that began in 2008 by the Advisory Committee on Bankruptcy Rules. Among other things, the new forms introduce different versions of case opening forms for individual debtors and non-individual debtors. The new forms are easier for debtors to understand and complete, and are designed to work with scheduled enhancements to the federal courts’ case opening and electronic case management system.

Some of the modernized forms are already in effect and will simply be renumbered on December 1, 2015. Other forms were published for public comment in August 2013 or 2014 and have been approved by the Advisory Committee on Bankruptcy Rules and the Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure (the Standing Committee). All but six existing official forms are on track to be replaced by modernized versions.

  • The following official forms are scheduled to be replaced:   1, 2, 3A, 3B, 4, 5, 6 Summary, 6 Declaration, 6A-J, 7, 8, 9A–I, 10, 10A, 10S1, 10S2, 11A, 11B, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16A, 16C, 16D, 17A, 17B, 17C, 18, 19, 22A1 through 22C2, 23 and 27.
  • The following six official forms will be revised in 2016 or later:  20A, 20B, 25A, 25B, 25C, and 26.

Virtually all the director's bankruptcy forms (current forms 13S, 15S, 18F–18WH, and 104–283) are also scheduled to be replaced by updated and renumbered versions on December 1, 2015.  Pending versions of the director's bankruptcy forms will be posted later this summer.

http://www.uscourts.gov/rules-policies/pending-rules-amendments/pending-changes-bankruptcy-forms