U.S. Trustee Program

U.S. Trustee Program

U.S. Trustee Program

About the U.S. Trustee Program

The United States Trustee Program is the component of the Department of Justice responsible for overseeing the administration of bankruptcy cases and private trustees under 28 U.S.C.
§ 586 and 11 U.S.C. § 101, et seq. We are a national program with broad administrative, regulatory, and litigation/enforcement authorities whose mission is to promote the integrity and efficiency of the bankruptcy system for the benefit of all stakeholders–debtors, creditors, and the public. The USTP consists of an Executive Office in Washington, DC, and 21 regions with 90 field office locations nationwide.

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Program Highlights

Supreme Court Agrees that Debt for Money Obtained by Fraud of Business Partner is Not Dischargeable in Bankruptcy
February 22, 2023

The U.S. Supreme Court agreed with the position of the United States, acting as amicus, and held that section 523(a)(2)(A) of the Bankruptcy Code bars the discharge in bankruptcy of an individual debtor’s debt for money obtained by the actual fraud of her business partner, even in the absence of a finding that the debtor personally committed the fraud or intended or knew of its occurrence. The USTP assisted the Solicitor General’s office in briefing and preparing for argument. The case is Bartenwerfer v. Buckley, 598 U.S.---, 2023 WL 2144417 (2023).

 

Important Notices

Updated Census Bureau Median Family Income Data
March 14, 2023

The Census Bureau’s Median Family Income Data accessible through the “Means Testing Information” page has been updated. The U.S. Trustee Program will apply the updated data to all cases filed on or after April 1, 2023.

 
USTP to Resume Debtor Audits
December 12, 2022

Effective March 13, 2023, the USTP will resume its designation of individual chapter 7 and chapter 13 cases for audit. These audits previously had been suspended in March 2020 due to public health concerns associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.

 
U.S. Trustee Program Implements Virtual Section 341 Meetings of Creditors in Region 19 (Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming)
November 18, 2022

Pursuant to its authority under 11 U.S.C. §§ 341(a) and 343, Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 2003, and other authorities, the U.S. Trustee Program (“USTP”) will implement virtual section 341 meetings of creditors (“341 meetings”) for all chapter 7, 12, and 13 cases in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming filed on or after December 1, 2022. The U.S. Trustee may approve alternative arrangements for 341 meetings when extenuating circumstances exist that preclude a debtor’s attendance by video. In addition, in rare cases, the U.S. Trustee may determine that an in-person 341 meeting is necessary. In such cases, appropriate health and safety protocols will be followed.

This move to virtual 341 meetings in Region 19 is a pilot program that will be implemented in USTP jurisdictions nationwide after this initial testing. Until then, 341 meetings in other USTP districts will continue under current protocols.

 

More Notices
 

Articles and Speeches

November 1, 2022

By Daniel J. Casamatta, Acting U.S. Trustee, Region 13; and Michael J. Bujold, Associate General Counsel for General and Administrative Law, EOUST. Reprinted with permission from ABI Journal (Vol. XLI, No. 11, November 2022).

September 2, 2022

By Adam Herring, Associate General Counsel for Consumer Practice, EOUST; and Scott Bomkamp, Trial Attorney, Orlando, FL. Reprinted with permission from ABI Journal (Vol. LXI, No. 9, September 2022)

July 8, 2022

Ramona D. Elliott, Acting Director, Executive Office for U.S. Trustees

June 10, 2022

Ramona D. Elliott, Acting Director, Executive Office for U.S. Trustees.

January 21, 2022

Clifford J. White III, Director, Executive Office for U.S. Trustees.

August 26, 2021

Clifford J. White III, Director, Executive Office for U.S. Trustees.

August 5, 2021

By Clifford J. White III, Director, EOUST; Walter W. Theus, Jr., Trial Attorney, EOUST; and Nan Roberts Eitel, Associate General Counsel for Chapter 11 Practice, EOUST. Published in ABI Journal (Vol. XL, No. 8, August 2021).

August 2, 2021

By Robert S. Gebhard, Assistant Director for Oversight, EOUST; and Nancy J. Gargula, U.S. Trustee, Regions 10 and 21. Reprinted with permission from American Bankruptcy Trustee Journal (Spring 2021).

July 7, 2021

Clifford J. White III, Director, Executive Office for U.S. Trustees.

General Information U.S. Trustee Program
Leadership 

Tara Twomey
Director

Contact 

Office of the Director
(202) 307-1391

Report Bankruptcy Fraud
Bankruptcy Information Sheet