With almost any type of court at the local, regional, or national level, a judge will be called upon to preside over proceedings within. In bankruptcy court, the chief officer of the court is the bankruptcy judge. The appointment of bankruptcy judges in the United States is nothing to sneeze at. As designated by the U.S. Court of Appeals, a particular bankruptcy judge will be expected to serve a 14-year term at his or her post.
The role of the bankruptcy judge is an important one, as bankruptcy judges will be expected to do more than just the generic part of the judge in other court cases. Indeed, these officers of bankruptcy court have several key functions to their name. The following are some notes on what a bankruptcy judge may be asked to do:
At the most basic level, bankruptcy judges are required to hear all the arguments made within bankruptcy court by attorneys on behalf of petitioners and creditors. As much as the determination of a debtor’s candidacy for bankruptcy relief in the first place is critical to the continuation of any case, bankruptcy judges must also decide if petitioners qualify for the specific chapter of the Bankruptcy Code.
While trustees will generally be doing most of the legwork when it comes to the negotiation between debtors and creditors and the transfer of monies between these parties, bankruptcy judges will still need to sign off on motions and petitions made at various points in the application process. After all, a bankruptcy judge is the primary administrator of the rules of bankruptcy court. Consequently, he or she must grant or deny said motions and approve the claims of creditors following the meeting of creditors.
