Information Agent

1.	What is the U.S. Trustee’s purpose in a Chapter 11 procedure?
2.	What is the Creditor’s Committee?
3.	How is the Creditor’s Committee created?
4.	What kinds of things does the Creditor’s Committee do?
5.	What is an Information Agent?
6.	How does the Information Agent differ from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court?

1.

What is the U.S. Trustee’s purpose in a Chapter 11 procedure?

The United States Trustee Program is a component of the Department of Justice that works to ensure the integrity of the bankruptcy system and intervenes in bankruptcy cases to uphold the bankruptcy laws. Among other things, the U.S. Trustee determines what official committees should be established to serve in the case; appoints committee members; and engages in oversight of committee actions. Each committee upholds the interests of the creditor group it represents, such as unsecured creditors, bondholders, or equity security holders. A committee usually has seven to 15 members, representing different subgroups of the creditor group. U.S. Trustee oversight includes organizing the committee and supervising the professionals, such as attorneys and accountants, who are employed by the committee.

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2.	What is the Creditor’s Committee?
	The Creditor’s Committee is a group that provides access to information to the larger pool of creditors who hold claims similar to the committee but are not themselves on the committee.

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3.

How is the Creditor’s Committee created?

Under Section 1102(a) of the Bankruptcy Code, the U.S. Trustee appoints a committee as soon as practicable after the order for relief to assure adequate representation of the general unsecured creditors in a Chapter 11 filing. These committee members are usually appointed from the largest holders of general unsecured claims against the debtor, and deemed appropriate representatives of the unsecured creditors’ interests by the U.S. Trustee.

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4.

What kinds of things does the Creditor’s Committee do?

The committee solicits and receives comments from the creditors and is subject to court orders compelling any additional report or disclosure to be made to the creditors. The committee may hire attorneys, accountants, or other agents, to represent or perform services for the committee. Any attorney or accountant employed to represent the committee may not, while employed by the committee, represent any other entity having an adverse interest in connection with the case. The committee may also consult with debtor concerning the administration of the case, investigate the acts, conduct, assets, liabilities, and financial condition of the debtor, the operation of the debtor’s business and the desirability of the continuance of such business, and any other matter relevant to the case or to the formulation of a plan of reorganization.

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5.	What is an Information Agent?
	The information agent assists the Creditor’s committee in disseminating the information about the Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceeding. This may happen through various kinds of communication, including, but not limited to, maintaining a dedicated website on the specific Chapter 11 case.

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6.	How does the Information Agent differ from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court?
	The Information Agent acts as an agent of the Court. Because of the vast amount of information inherent in each Chapter 11 case, and the increasing number of cases, the court system’s burden is eased by the use of third party agents to provide efficient and timely information to the creditors in any given case.

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