The judges of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida are considering proposed amendments to the Local Rules, as well as two new rules. The proposals are posted for public comment on the Court’s website commencing on March 17, 2025. The public comment period ends on May 9, 2025. Once finalized and approved with the judges, the new and amended Local Rules will become effective on August 1, 2025.

Attorneys and parties who appear before the Court are encouraged to review the proposed new and amended Local Rules. The Court appreciates all comments and will consider them prior to the effective date.

Click HERE to review the proposed new and amended rules.

Click HERE to provide comments regarding the proposed new and amended rules.

Click HERE to view the January 2025 edition.

Due to the winter storm warnings and potential hazardous driving conditions, the Jacksonville division of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida will be closed on Wednesday, January 22, 2025.

Due to scheduled maintenance, the CM/ECF application will be offline and unavailable from Saturday, February 15 through Monday, February 17.

The strike by Canadian postal workers has ended. The Bankruptcy Noticing Center (BNC) resumed mailing notices to Canada effective December 18, 2024, including any notices picked up by the BNC on or after December 16, 2024

Although President Biden has declared a National Day of Mourning for President Jimmy Carter on January 9, 2025, the Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida will remain open.

On December 10, 2024, the Bankruptcy Noticing Center (BNC) began to bypass notices that specifically contain the word "Canada" in the last line of the address. Bypassed addresses are indicated as such on the BNC Certificate of Notice. As part of the bypass process, the BNC (i) notifies the debtor's attorney of mail that is bypassed as undeliverable, and (ii) notifies the court of bypassed mail if the debtor is pro se and for adversary proceedings. As a reminder, electronic noticing through the BNC is unavailable to international recipients.

Between November 15 and December 9, 2024, notices to Canadian recipients were not bypassed. Those notices were held at the U.S./Canadian border and are now being processed for delivery.

We will post further updates as the BNC provides us with new information.

All divisions of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida will be closed on Tuesday, December 24, 2024; Wednesday, December 25, 2024; and Wednesday, January 1, 2025.

Due to a postal worker strike in Canada, mail from the Bankruptcy Noticing Center (BNC) to Canadian recipients is being held at the U.S./Canadian border and will not be delivered until the postal strike ends. Canadian recipients have not received mail from the BNC since November 15, 2024. Please note that electronic noticing through the BNC is unavailable to international recipients.

Counsel should make accurate representations of service of papers to Canadian parties, particularly if serving papers by negative notice under Local Rule 2002-4.

The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida announces that Sheryl L. Loesch, who has served as its Clerk of Court since 2017, will retire effective December 31, 2024. Ms. Loesch has served the United States Courts for over 35 years. Prior to joining the Bankruptcy Court, Ms. Loesch served for 18 years as the Clerk of Court for the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida. She also served as the Chief Deputy Clerk in the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas. During her exemplary career, Ms. Loesch served as the Clerk Liaison to the Judicial Conference's International Judicial Relations Committee for over ten years; as a founding member and president of the International Association for Court Administration, Inc.; as president of the Federal Court Clerks Association; and as a member of numerous advisory committees to the Administrative Office of the United States Courts.

The Bankruptcy Judges of the Middle District have selected José A. Rodriguez to replace Ms. Loesch as Clerk of Court, effective January 1, 2025. Mr. Rodriguez joined the Court as its Chief Deputy Clerk in December 2021. He has over 22 years of bankruptcy court experience, having previously served as the Chief Deputy Clerk in the Southern District of Florida for seven years, as well as the Southern District's Director of Administrative Services and its Assistant Director of IT. The Court is confident that Mr. Rodriguez's wealth of experience will enhance the Court's mission to serve the public by processing and deciding bankruptcy cases with fairness, impartiality, and excellence, while treating everyone with dignity, integrity, and respect.

Residents of the Middle District of Florida continue to receive fraudulent phone calls or emails claiming that they have an arrest warrant or face a similar adverse situation due to a failure to appear in federal court. The scammer may claim the individual missed jury duty or has been charged with a crime. The scammer may tell the victim that he or she can avoid arrest or other negative consequences by making a payment, which may include purchasing a prepaid card and then giving the card number to the scammer. The scammer may also ask for payment via Venmo, Zelle, or cryptocurrency, such as Bitcoin.

Click HERE for more information.

Effective December 1, 2024, the following Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure, Official Bankruptcy Forms, and Director's Bankruptcy Forms were amended:

• Bankruptcy Rules 1007, 4004, 5009, 7001, 8023.1 (new rule), and 9006;


• Official Form 410; and


• Director's Forms 1040, 2000, and 2630.

Official Form 423 was abrogated. Rule 1007(b)(7) requires submission of a certificate from the approved course provider to evidence completion of a course in personal financial management.

In addition, the Bankruptcy Rules, Parts I through IX, have been restyled.

Click HERE for information about the rule amendments.

Click HERE for information about the form amendments.

Full-Time - $193,607 - $224,178 Annually

The United States Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida seeks a highly qualified, senior level executive to serve as its Clerk of Court. The Clerk works in collaboration with and reports directly to the bankruptcy judges. Please review the announcement for application procedures.

Maintenance to CM/ECF has been completed, and the application is back online. Please email the court's Help Desk at ecfhelp@flmb.uscourts.gov if you encounter any user issues.

NOTE: The Exhibit Upload process remains unavailable for both inside users and external filers. We are currently working to resolve the issue and will send another e-mail once it has been repaired.

Scammers are targeting debtors, using information they obtain from individuals' bankruptcy petitions. Attorneys, please alert your clients to this scam. A scammer recently sent a letter to a consumer bankruptcy attorney's client in the Middle District of Florida, right after the client's petition date. The letter referenced the debtor's case number and attorney's name, asserted the debtor "intentionally withheld assets in your bank account tied to your Social Security number xxx-xx-XXXX (the last four digits were actually included), and demanded a one-time amnesty fine to avoid referral to the trustee. Click HERE to read more about the scam. Do not respond to any such demand. If you have an attorney, please send scam correspondence to your attorney immediately upon receipt. Forward scam correspondence to Guy A. Van Baalen, Assistant U.S. Trustee, at guy.a.vanbaalen@usdoj.gov.

There have been recent nationwide reports of fake Notices of Electronic Filing (NEFs) being sent to attorneys and law firms. These fraudulent NEFs are phishing attempts designed to prompt recipients to reply, after which they receive a follow-up email containing a link to a malicious website. We urge you to exercise caution if you receive any suspicious NEFs. Please verify case details and documents through CM/ECF only and avoid downloading attachments or clicking on links from unofficial or unverified sources.

Due to scheduled maintenance, the CM/ECF application will be offline and unavailable from Saturday, November 9, at 1:00 a.m. to Monday, November 11, at 12:00 p.m.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit seeks applications from all highly qualified candidates for a fourteen-year appointment as a United States Bankruptcy Judge for the Middle District of Florida at Tampa. The position has become available due to the passing of Judge Michael G. Williamson. Please note all applications must be submitted to the Circuit Executive's Office by November 25, 2024.

Click HERE to view the full notice.

The Tampa and Orlando Divisions of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida will resume normal operations on Tuesday, October 15, 2024.

The Jacksonville Division resumed normal operations on Friday, October 11.

Due to Hurricane Milton, the Tampa and Orlando Divisions of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida will remain closed on Friday, October 11, 2024. All hearings scheduled for October 11 in Tampa, Fort Myers, and Orlando cases are canceled and will be rescheduled.

The Jacksonville Division will resume normal operations on Friday, October 11.

Any additional court closures will be announced here as they become official.

For information on creditors' meetings, please contact the trustee assigned to the case.

Due to Hurricane Milton, the Tampa Division of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida will close on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, October 9, 10, and 11, 2024. All hearings scheduled for October 9 - 11 in the Tampa division are canceled and will be rescheduled.

The Orlando and Jacksonville Divisions will close on Wednesday and Thursday, October 9 and 10, 2024. All hearings scheduled for October 9 and 10 in the Orlando and Jacksonville divisions are canceled and will be rescheduled.

Any additional court closures will be announced here as they become official.

For information on creditors' meetings, please contact the trustee assigned to the case.

Due to Hurricane Milton, the Tampa, Orlando, and Jacksonville Divisions of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida will close on Wednesday and Thursday, October 9 and 10, 2024. All hearings scheduled for October 9 and 10 in each division are canceled and will be rescheduled.

Any additional court closures will be announced here as they become official.

For information on creditors' meetings, please contact the trustee assigned to the case.

Due to Hurricane Milton, the Tampa Division of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida will close on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, October 8 - 10, 2024. All hearings scheduled for Tampa and Fort Myers cases on October 8, 9, and 10 are canceled and will be rescheduled.

The Orlando Division will close on Wednesday and Thursday, October 9 and 10, 2024. All hearings scheduled for Orlando cases on October 9 and 10 are canceled and will be rescheduled.

Any additional court closures will be announced here as they become official.

For information on creditors' meetings in Tampa, Fort Myers, and Orlando cases, please contact the trustee assigned to the case.

Due to Hurricane Milton, the Tampa Division of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida will close on Tuesday and Wednesday, October 8 and 9, 2024. All hearings scheduled for Tampa and Fort Myers cases on October 8 and 9 are canceled and will be rescheduled. Any additional court closures will be announced here as they become official. For information on creditors' meetings in Tampa and Fort Myers cases, please contact the trustee assigned to the case.

Due to Hurricane Helene, the Tampa Division of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida, including the Tampa intake window, will remain closed on Friday, September 27. All hearings scheduled for Tampa and Fort Myers cases on September 27 are cancelled and will be rescheduled.

The Orlando and Jacksonville Divisions, including the intake windows, will reopen and resume normal operations on Friday, September 27.

Due to Tropical Storm/Hurricane Helene, the following courthouse closures and suspensions of operations will occur:

The Tampa Division of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida, including the Tampa intake window, will close on Wednesday and Thursday, September 25 and 26, 2024. All hearings scheduled for Tampa and Fort Myers cases on September 25 and 26 are cancelled and will be rescheduled. Depending on conditions, and subject to further announcement, the Tampa courthouse may reopen on Friday. For information on creditors' meetings in Tampa and Fort Myers cases, please contact the trustee assigned to the case.

The Orlando and Jacksonville Divisions, including the intake windows, will close on Thursday, September 26. All hearings scheduled for Orlando and Jacksonville cases on September 26 are cancelled and will be rescheduled. Depending on conditions, and subject to further announcement, the Orlando and Jacksonville courthouses may reopen on Friday. For information on creditors' meetings in Orlando and Jacksonville cases, please contact the trustee assigned to the case.

Due to Tropical Storm/Hurricane Helene, the Tampa Division of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida, including the Tampa intake window, will close on Wednesday and Thursday, September 25 and 26, 2024. All hearings scheduled for Tampa and Fort Myers cases on September 25 and 26 are cancelled and will be rescheduled. Depending on conditions, and subject to further announcement, the Tampa Courthouse may reopen on Friday. For information on creditors' meetings in Tampa and Fort Myers cases, please contact the trustee assigned to the case.

The United States Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida is soliciting bids for office chairs for our Tampa, Jacksonville and Orlando locations. For any technical or specification questions, please contact Dario Pavic, Contracting Officer at dario_pavic@flmb.uscourts.gov

To be considered, all quotes must be received by Friday, September 20, 2024, at 4:00 p.m. Please email quotes to dario_pavic@flmb.uscourts.gov.

Click Here to view the full Public Notice.

The next session of Judge McEwen's mentoring program for lawyers new to the practice of bankruptcy law is scheduled virtually for Tuesday, September 24, 2024, from Noon to 1:15 p.m. via Zoom. LOGIN INFORMATION WILL BE PROVIDED TO THE FIRST 100 WHO RSVP. Judge McEwen's special guest for this program is Guy Van Baalen, Assistant U.S. Trustee, Tampa Division.

Program Title: SUBCHAPTER V: LET US INTRODUCE (OR REINTRODUCE) THE MOST POPULAR 11 ON THE PLANET (AT LEAST IN FLMB)

Click HERE to view the full announcement.

The Local Rules Lawyers' Advisory Committee invites interested parties, including members of the Bar and Court employees, to submit their suggestions, comments, and proposals for proposed new Local Rules or revisions to our current Local Rules. Suggestions should be submitted no later than October 15, 2024.

Click HERE to submit recommendations to the Committee.

The Bankruptcy Judges of the Middle District of Florida have approved amendments to the Local Rules, effective August 15, 2024.

Please Click HERE to view a memorandum from Judge Lori V. Vaughan summarizing the changes.

Click HERE to access the amended Local Rules.

The United States Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida is soliciting bids for a cyclical maintenance project in the Tampa Division for flooring and painting. To request a copy of the Scope of Work, please email dario_pavic@flmb.uscourts.gov and enter the Tampa cyclical maintenance project on the subject line.

To be considered, all Bids must be received by Wednesday, August 28, 2024, at 4:00 p.m.

Click HERE to view the full Public Notice.