Bankruptcy A-Z: J is for Jurisdiction
December 29th, 2011 | 
Author: Bankruptcy A-Z: J is for Jurisdiction.
A court must have jurisdiction to enter a valid, enforceable judgment on an issue or claim. The court must have the authority to hear a particular type of case relating to a specific subject matter. Without this authority, the court cannot hear the case and any order from the court is void (or can be voided). This type of authority is known as subject matter jurisdiction and cannot be waived.
In addition, the court needs to have power over the defendants involved. This type of jurisdiction is known as personal jurisdiction and it can be waived (Plaintiffs already submit themselves to the jurisdiction of the court).
J is for Jurisdiction.
The jurisdiction of the bankruptcy court, like that of any other federal court, is limited by statute. 28 U.S.C. § 1334(b) provides that “the district courts shall have original but not exclusive jurisdiction of all civil proceedings arising under title 11 (the bankruptcy code) or arising in or related to cases under title 11.” The district courts may, in turn, refer “any or all proceedings arising under title 11 or arising in or related to a case under title 11…to the bankruptcy judges for the district.”
The federal district courts have original and exclusive jurisdiction over all cases arising under the bankruptcy code. That means that bankruptcy cases cannot be filed in state court. United States bankruptcy courts are courts created under Article I of the United States Constitution, as opposed to the district courts which are created under Article III.
Technically, the district courts have subject matter jurisdiction over bankruptcy matters pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1334(a). However, 28 U.S.C. § 157(a) enables the district courts, by order, to refer bankruptcy matters to the bankruptcy court. As a practical matter, most district courts have a standing order referring those cases. In unusual circumstances, a district court may in a particular case withdraw the reference and decide the case itself.
Once a bankruptcy case is filed, that court has exclusive jurisdiction over all of the property of the debtor as of the date the case was filed and of property of the bankruptcy estate. The bankruptcy court can only hear cases under the bankruptcy code and all core proceedings arising under the bankruptcy code. 28 U.S.C. § 157(b)(2) contains a non-exclusive list of core proceedings. In non-core proceedings, a bankruptcy court may only “submit proposed findings of fact and conclusions of law to the district court.”
As you can see, jurisdiction forms the basis of a court’s power to hear and decide a case. If the court does not have jurisdiction over the subject matter, that decision is void. Unlike other objections that are waived if they are not raised, an objection to subject matter jurisdiction can be raised at any time even on appeal.
If you have a bankruptcy case with issues that are not obviously based on the bankruptcy code, you need an experienced attorney. If you are in the metro Richmond area, or anywhere in central Virginia, contact bankruptcy and consumer lawyer Mitchell Goldstein at (804) 592-1674 or by email at mitch at mitchellpgoldstein dot com.
Other LETTER posts:
J is for Joint Filing.
J is for Judgment.
J is for Your Personal Finance Lawyer (Jay Fleischman).
J is for Justify.
J is for Judgment Liens.
J is for Joint Debts.
Photo Credit: TooFarNorth
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