Welcome to a series of best practices tips hosted by the Washington Western Bankruptcy Court (WAWB). This series of articles is designed to benefit new and seasoned bankruptcy professionals. Each article in the series will focus on a different aspect of a bankruptcy case or procedure. Note that the opinions expressed in the articles below do not necessarily represent the opinions of the Court or its individual judges.
Would you like to receive future practice tips directly to your email inbox? You can subscribe using this link to receive practice tips as well as court news and announcements. Of course, all practice tips will also be archived on this webpage if you want to review them later. If you have suggestions for future topics, or want to contribute an article for the series, contact gina_zadra_walton @wawb.uscourts.gov.
The Bankruptcy Best Practices Series
- Recent Changes to Washington's Personal Property Exemption Statute, RCW § 6.15.010 (2024)(REVISED August 12, 2024)
Allison Whitehead and Travis Bremmeyer, Externs to Hon. Mary Jo Heston - A Motion Practice Primer: W.D. Washington Bankruptcy Motion Practice under Local Rule 9013-1
Shane Creason, Term Law Clerk to Hon. Mary Jo Heston - The New DOJ/DOE Guidance for Student Loan Bankruptcy Litigation: Promising Early Results
The Honorable Brian D. Lynch, with Brittani Bushman, and permission of the NACCT Academy - Sealing and Redacting Bankruptcy Records (Updated)
Yasmene Hammoud, Extern to the Hon. Mary Jo Heston and Hon. Brian Lynch - In re Evans: Chapter 13 Trustee Fees in Cases Dismissed Pre-Confirmation
Shane Creason, Term Law Clerk to the Hon. Mary Jo Heston - The Importance of the Notice of Electronic Filing
Trisha McGraw, Tacoma Divisional Manager, Bankruptcy Court, W.D. Washington - Eviction Prevention in Washington State
Janet Buttenwieser, Judicial Extern to the Hon. Mary Jo Heston - Resumption of Debtor Audits in Individual Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 Cases
United States Trustee Program, Seattle Office - Navigating the New Student Loan Discharge Process: Overview and Additional Resources
Latife Neu, Attorney - In re Masingale: "100% of Value" Exemption Claim
Katherine Culbertson, Law Clerk to Hon. Brian Lynch - A Financial Assistance Program that Homeowners “HAF” to Know About (updated for 2022 income limits)
Michael A. Rogers, Law Clerk to the Hon. Mary Jo Heston - Following the Bankruptcy Threshold Adjustment and Technical Corrections Act
Alexandra K. Yerigan, Law Clerk to the Hon. Marc Barreca - The Debtor’s Right to Dismiss a Chapter 13 Case and Conditioning Dismissal
The Honorable Brian D. Lynch, with Katherine Culbertson, and with permission of the NCBJ - ZoomGov Video Hearing Guide for Participants
Courtesy of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, California Central, with local modifications by Curtis Udy, WAWB Courtroom Technology and Services Supervisor - Updates from the Washington State Bar Association
Sara Niegowski, WSBA Chief Communication and Outreach Officer - Service on Credit Unions
Taylor M. Jones, Law Clerk to the Hon. Brian D. Lynch 8/21/2021 - The Thomas T. Glover Mediation Program: A USER’S GUIDE FOR INITIATING MEDIATION IN A MAIN CASE OR ADVERSARY PROCEEDING
Glover Program Executive Committee - S5406, Washington's New Homestead Law, updated May 3, 2021
Marc S. Stern and Christina Latta Henry - Fastrack to Payday-Practice Pointers for Chapter 13 Attorney Fee Applications in WAWB
Bryan Williamson, Law Clerk to Judge Mary Jo Heston - The Consolidated Appropriate Act of 2021 and Bankruptcy
Courtesy of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Eastern District of Missouri - Best Practices When Considering Filing Under SubChapter V
Geoffrey Groshong, Subchapter V Trustee, WAWB - Best Practices for Handling Initial Matters in Chapter 11
Office of the United State Trustee, Seattle - Best Practices for Chapter 13 Plan Confirmation
Michael Malaier, Chapter 13 Trustee - Tacoma - Best Practices for 341 Meetings (9/8/2020)
Terry Donahue and Mark Waldron, Tacoma Panel Trustees
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WAWB Bench Bar Meeting Materials
January 22 and 23, 2025
Thank you to everyone who attended the 2025 Bench Bar Meetings held earlier this week. And a special thanks to those who joined us as panelists and presenters. Attached are the handouts from the meetings including the employment application checklist, identifying filings with errors, and the top ten mistakes resulting in lodged orders (presented in Tacoma).
- Ten Most Common Mistakes Resulting in Lodged Orders and Tips to Avoid These Pitfalls;
- Checklist for Filing an Employment Application; and
- Identifying Filings with Errors (reading NEFs).
January 23 and 24, 2024
Thank you to all who presented at the recent bench bar meetings. Attached is the summary of local rule changes presented by Judge Dore, Jason Wilson-Aguilar (Seattle) and Mike Malaier (Tacoma), Chapter 13 Trustees. Also attached is the power point deck from the session on evidence, presented by Laurie Thornton, Ryan Moore, Claire Martirosian and Thomas Buford.
Summary of Local Rule Changes 2024
Evidence in Bankruptcy Court - presentation slide deck