Motion for Withdrawal of a Reference

Last Updated:  September 27, 2013

09/27/2013: Added Civil Cover Sheet Update

Created: September 18, 2007

 

Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 5011(a) requires that a motion for withdrawal of a case or proceeding be heard exclusively by a district judge.  The bankruptcy judge may not conduct hearings on a withdrawal motion. 

 

Motions for withdrawal of a reference should be filed with the bankruptcy clerk. A motion for withdrawal of a reference must be accompanied by the appropriate filing fee.  (Note:  If a child support creditor or its representative is the movant, and if such movant files the form required by section 304(g) of the 1994 Act, no fee is required). If a motion for withdrawal of a reference is erroneously filed with the district court, the district court clerk, after noting the date of receipt thereon, should transmit the document to the bankruptcy clerk.  Fed. R. Bankr. P. 5005(c).    The court will transmit motion for withdrawal of a reference to the district court the following business day.

 

Effective September 30, 2013

In order to comply with District Court Local Rule 3.1, E-filers should include a Civil Cover Sheet as an attachment to any Notice of Appeal, Notice of Appeal, and Motion for Leave to Appeal, or Withdrawal of Reference.  The Civil Cover Sheet can be obtained from the District Court website.

 

Step-by-Step Procedures:

  1. Select [Bankruptcy>Motions/Applications]

  2. Enter case number and click Next

  3. Select Withdrawal of Reference from pick list and click Next

  1. Select Party from party pick list or Add/create new party

  2. Click Next

    The Attorney/Party Association screen may display.  If it does, click here.

  3. Click Next

  4. A will display

    REMINDER: Please remember to include a Civil Cover Sheet.

    Click Next

  5. The PDF Document selection screen will display.

    Click Browse button and navigate to locate the appropriate document/file

  6. View file to verify the correct file is being selected

  7. Click Open button and filename will appear in the browse window

    The next screen contains the filing fee amount

  8. Click Next

  9. The Modify Text screen will display.  Click down arrow to select a prefix if applicable.

    Click Next

  10. The Final Text screen will display.  This is your final opportunity to modify the entry before submitting the filing.

    Verify the accuracy of the docket text

  11. Click Next to complete filing process

The Electronic Payment screen will appear.

Next, pay filing fee for the motion

Electronic Payment

You have the option to:

Select one of the two options and close the window when done.

The Notice of Electronic Filing will display.  It is the verification that the filing has been sent electronically to the court.

Copies of this notice and the document filed are emailed to all participants who receive electronic notification in the case.  You have a period of 15 days for a one time free look a