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Bankr. W.D. Tex. L. Rule 3015-1 — Chapter 13 Plan and Confirmation Hearings: the court's own rule, verbatim from Local Court Rules of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Texas (These Rules are effective as of February 3, 2025.), official PDF, sha-custodied. Court-level requirement: applies in every case before the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Texas alongside the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure and any judge-specific procedures.
(a) Timely Filing of Plan, Form of Plan. If the plan is not timely filed, the Court may summarily dismiss the case without notice or hearing. A motion to extend the time for filing the plan must be filed before the expiration of the time provided in FRBP 3015(b). The local form plan may be found on the Court’s website at https://www.txwb.uscourts.gov/official-forms-western-district-texas and must be used instead of the Official Form Plan. (b) Notice. The debtor shall serve a copy of the plan and any amended plan on the trustee, all creditors, and all parties requesting notice in accordance with FRBP 7005, and L. Rule 7005-1. Absent leave of the Court, any amended plan must be filed and served at least 28 days prior to the confirmation hearing; however, the Court may consider de minimis, non-substantive amendments to the plan at the confirmation hearing. A certificate of service must be filed with the Clerk of the Court reflecting service of any plan or amended plan and should indicate service was made pursuant to L. Rule 9013- 1. (c) Objections to the Plan. Unless otherwise ordered, any creditor or party in interest, other than the chapter 13 trustee, shall file a written objection to the plan no later than 14 days before the confirmation hearing date. Failure of a creditor to affirmatively and timely object to a proposed plan constitutes acceptance of treatment of such creditor’s claim under the plan, including treatment of a secured claim, under 11 U.S.C. § 1325(a)(5)(A). Objections to confirmation must be specific and cite legal authority, if applicable. Once an objection is filed, that objection is not automatically resolved when the debtor files an amended plan and must still be resolved before plan confirmation. (d) Pay Orders and Waivers of Pay Orders. Pay orders are required in all chapter 13 cases, except as provided herein or as otherwise ordered by the Court. The chapter 13 trustee may waive the requirement of a pay order at the Meeting of Creditors on request of the debtor. If the chapter 13 trustee declines to waive the requirement of a pay order, then the debtor may request a waiver of the pay order from the Court on motion and notice to the trustee and with opportunity for a hearing. Either the debtor or the chapter 13 trustee may submit the proposed pay order for review and approval by the Court. (e) Required Certifications by Chapter 13 Debtors. Not more than seven days prior but at least three days prior to the confirmation hearing, the debtor shall execute and file the local form at Appendix L-3015-1, Declaration of the Debtor Concerning Confirmation Requirements. (f) Modification of Plan After Confirmation. Any proposed modification to a plan after confirmation, including but not limited to a request for moratorium, to cure payment arrearages, or to temporarily suspend plan payment shall be made by motion. Notice of the motion shall comply with FRBP 2002(a)(5) and L. Rule 9014-1 and proof of service of such notice shall be filed within two business days of the filing of the motion. If filed by the debtor, the motion shall: (1) State clearly the reasons for the requested plan modification; (2) Indicate if any prior moratorium or plan modification has been granted; (3) Include a statement detailing what material changes there are, if any, to the debtor’s monthly income and expense budget. Contemporaneously with the motion to modify, amended Schedules I and J must be filed with the Court as a separate entry on the docket. The requirement to file amended Schedules I and J only applies to the debtor, and not the chapter 13 trustee; and (4) Detail the impact that the proposed modification will have on the proposed distribution to general unsecured creditors. (g) Trustee’s Recommendation Regarding Confirmation. (1) By signing or submitting the proposed confirmation order, the chapter 13 trustee affirms that it is his or her recommendation that the Court should confirm the proposed plan. (2) If the trustee, creditor, or other party in interest objects to confirmation, the debtor shall file a response to pending objections to confirmation no later than three business days prior to the confirmation hearing. If the response indicates the debtor will address an issue in the future, the response should specifically indicate when and how the issues will be addressed. If no response is timely filed, the Court may elect to deny confirmation by default. (h) Excused Attendance at Confirmation Hearings. If all of the following conditions are met, the debtor and the debtor’s attorney are excused from attending the scheduled chapter 13 plan confirmation hearing: (1) the plan has been filed and requirements imposed by any applicable standing order affecting chapter 13 practice in the division in which the case is pending have been complied with; (2) no party in interest has timely filed an objection or any such objection has been resolved before confirmation; (3) the chapter 13 trustee has recommended confirmation; and (4) the debtor has filed the Declaration Concerning Confirmation Requirements, as required by subsection (e). (i) Conduit Mortgage Payments in Chapter 13 Plans. (1) In accordance with the terms of the proposed plan, if the trustee has available funds prior to plan confirmation, the trustee may disburse, as if a plan has been confirmed, proposed conduit mortgage payments to a secured mortgage creditor (“Mortgage Creditor”), who has filed an uncontested proof of claim, which the trustee believes contains sufficient information. (2) In accordance with the terms of the proposed plan, the trustee is authorized to establish an additional claim for a Mortgage Creditor for the debtor’s first post-petition mortgage payment due after the filing of the case (“Gap Payment”). The Gap Payment claim will be paid as a secured claim, on a pro-rata basis along with the pre-petition mortgage arrearage claim, unless a Mortgage Creditor has already clearly added such amount to the pre-petition arrearage proof of claim. This allowance shall reimburse the Mortgage Creditor for any post-petition delinquency that may accrue until the trustee begins conduit mortgage payments to that creditor under subsection (i)(1) above. (3) If a party in interest objects to the amount of a conduit mortgage payment, the trustee is authorized to hold the portion of plan payment attributable to the conduit mortgage payment in reserve pending a resolution of the objection by an allowed amended claim or a court order. (4) After discontinuing conduit mortgage payments through the chapter 13 plan (at or around the completion of a chapter 13 case) the trustee may file a Notice Deeming Mortgage Current and Directing Debtor to Resume Monthly Mortgage Payments (“Notice”). A Mortgage Creditor will have 21 days from the filing of the Notice to file an objection to the Notice. Absent a timely objection, the trustee’s Notice will be binding on a Mortgage Creditor and debtor.
(a) Timely Filing of Plan, Form of Plan. If the plan is not timely filed, the Court may summarily dismiss the case without notice or hearing. A motion to extend the time for filing the plan must be filed before the expiration of the time provided in FRBP 3015(b). The local form p