CORPORATE OWNERSHIP STATEMENT TO BE FILED BY DEBTOR THAT IS A BUSINESS ENTITY OF ANY KIND

           The Corporate Ownership Statement required to be filed by any debtor that is a corporation with the petition under Bankruptcy Rule 1007(a)(1), must also be filed by any debtor that is a business entity of any kind irrespective of whether it is of a kind enumerated in section 101(9)(A) of the Bankruptcy Code. In addition to the information required under Bankruptcy Rule 7007.1, the statement must include the name and address of any corporation whose securities are publicly traded in which the debtor directly or indirectly owns 10% or more of any class of the corporation’s equity interests, and any general or limited partnership or joint venture in which the debtor owns an interest.
 

Comment

            Bankruptcy Rule 1007(a), as amended effective December 1, 2003, requires a Corporate Ownership Statement containing the information described in Bankruptcy Rule 7007.1 to be filed by the debtor with the petition. Bankruptcy Rule 1007(a), however, only refers to a debtor that is a corporation. “Corporation” is broadly defined under section 101(9) of the Bankruptcy Code (and includes, among other entities, limited liability companies and other unincorporated companies or associations), but it does not cover general or limited partnerships. The reasons for which this rule was enacted – to give the Judges of this Court information by which they can determine whether or not they need to recuse themselves in a particular case – apply equally without regard to the legal form of a business entity. Local Bankruptcy Rule 1007-3 was therefore amended in 2024 to mandate that the Corporate Ownership Statement referenced in Bankruptcy Rule 1007(a) be filed by a business entity of any kind.

            The heading of this rule was amended in 2009 to more accurately reflect the substance of the rule.