Form B 312, Order and Notice for Hearing on Disclosure Statement

Official Form 312, Order and Notice for Hearing on Disclosure Statement, is the bankruptcy form that serves as both a court order and a notice telling the debtor, its creditors and other parties in interest when and where the court will consider approving a disclosure statement.

The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts publishes it as an Official Bankruptcy Form, which the Judicial Conference approves and Bankruptcy Rule 9009 requires to be used. According to the form's instructions, it is used in chapter 9 municipality cases and chapter 11 reorganization cases. The disclosure statement it refers to contains information about the debtor's assets, liabilities and business affairs, enough for a creditor holding a claim or interest to make an informed judgment about the plan of reorganization (11 U.S.C. § 1125).

The form states four things: the place, date and time of the hearing; the last day for filing and serving written objections under Fed. R. Bankr. P. 3017(a); the number of days after entry of the order within which the disclosure statement and plan must be distributed under the same rule; and the mailing address for requests for copies. It is signed "By the court" by a United States Bankruptcy Judge.

The instructions describe the form as legally sufficient but often only the starting point for a longer notice with provisions for a particular case.

The form is used in chapter 11 reorganization cases and chapter 9 municipality cases, where a disclosure statement and plan have been filed and the court must hold a hearing on approving the disclosure statement.

Although it is issued in the name of the court, the instructions say the order and notice will normally be drafted by the attorney for the debtor or by another plan proponent. The court must approve it before it is sent to creditors and other parties in interest. The judge signs it as an order; the person completing it for the court is not the signatory.

The recipients are the debtor, its creditors and other parties in interest, as the form's opening line addresses them. The form includes bracketed alternatives so it can be adapted: "chapter 11 [or chapter 9]" and "debtor in possession [or trustee or debtor or a named party]" for requests for copies.

The instructions do not say the form applies in other chapters. Use another form if your case is not a chapter 9 or chapter 11 case.

The triggering event is the filing of a disclosure statement and a plan under chapter 11 (or chapter 9) of the Bankruptcy Code; the form's first line asks who filed them and on what date. The order and notice must be approved by the court before it is sent to creditors and other parties in interest.

The form then sets its own dates: the hearing date and time, the last day for filing and serving written objections under Fed. R. Bankr. P. 3017(a), and the number of days after entry of the order within which the disclosure statement and plan must be distributed. The form itself prints no fixed deadlines; the court and the plan proponent fill them in for the case.

The form is not sent to an agency. It is drafted by the debtor's attorney or another plan proponent and approved by the court; after that it is sent to creditors and other parties in interest. The form and its instructions name no filing address, portal or fee.

• Court approval: the instructions say the order must be approved by the court before being sent out. The judge signs on the line "By the court" with the date in MM / DD / YYYY format.
• Distribution: once entered, the order and notice go to the debtor, its creditors and other parties in interest. Item 3 sets the number of days after entry within which the disclosure statement and plan are distributed under Fed. R. Bankr. P. 3017(a).
• Requests for copies: item 4 gives the mailing address to which parties send requests for copies of the disclosure statement and plan.

FillingPDF lets you fill out and download the PDF; submission follows the court's channels above.