Rule 9027. Removing a Claim or Cause of Action from Another Court
(a) Notice of Removal.
(1)Where Filed; Form and Content. A notice of removal must be filed with the clerk for the district and division where the state or federal civil action is pending. The notice must be signed under Rule 9011 and must:
(A) contain a short and plain statement of the facts that entitle the party to remove;
(B) contain a statement that the party filing the notice does or does not consent to the bankruptcy court’s entry of a final judgment or order; and
(C) be accompanied by a copy of all process and pleadings.
(2)Time to File When the Claim Was Filed Before the Bankruptcy Case Is Commenced. If the claim or cause of action in a civil action is pending when a bankruptcy case is commenced, the notice of removal must be filed within the longest of these periods:
(A) 90 days after the order for relief in the bankruptcy case;
(B) if the claim or cause of action has been stayed under § 362, 30 days after an order terminating the stay is entered; or
(C) in a Chapter 11 case, 30 days after a trustee qualifies—but no later than 180 days after the order for relief.
(3)Time to File When the Claim Is Filed After the Bankruptcy Case Was Commenced. If a claim or cause of action is asserted in another court after the bankruptcy case was commenced, a party filing a notice of removal must do so within the shorter of these periods:
(A) 30 days after receiving (by service or otherwise) the initial pleading setting forth the claim or cause of action sought to be removed; or
(B) 30 days after receiving the summons if the initial pleading has been filed but not served with the summons.
(b)Notice to Other Parties and to the Court from Which the Claim Was Removed. A party filing a notice of removal must promptly:
(1) serve a copy on all other parties to the removed claim or cause of action; and
(2) file a copy with the clerk of the court from which it was removed.
(c)Effective Date of Removal. Removal becomes effective when the notice is filed under (b)(2). The parties must proceed no further in the court from which the claim or cause of action was removed, unless it is remanded.
(d)Remand After Removal. A motion to remand is governed by Rule 9014. The party filing the motion must serve a copy on all parties to the removed claim or cause of action.
(e) Procedure After Removal.
(1)Bringing Proper Parties Before the Court. After removal, the district court—or the bankruptcy judge to whom the bankruptcy case has been referred—may issue all necessary orders and process to bring before it all proper parties. It does not matter whether they were served by process issued by the court from which the claim or cause of action was removed, or otherwise.
(2)Records of Prior Proceedings. The judge may require the party filing the notice of removal to file with the clerk copies of all records and proceedings relating to the claim or cause of action that were filed in the court from which the removal occurred.
(3)Statement by a Party Other Than the Removing Party. A party who has filed a pleading regarding a removed claim or cause of action—except the party filing the notice of removal—must:
(A) file a statement that the party does or does not consent to the bankruptcy court’s entry of a final order or judgment;
(B) sign the statement under Rule 9011;
(C) file it within 14 days after the notice of removal is filed; and
(D) mail a copy to every other party to the removed claim or cause of action.
(f)Process Regarding a Defendant After Removal. If a defendant has not been served—or service has not been completed before removal or has been proved defective—then process or service may be completed or new process issued under the Part VII rules. A defendant served after removal may move to remand the claim or cause of action.
(g) Applying Part VII Rules.
(1)In General. The Part VII rules apply to a claim or cause of action removed to a district court from a federal or state court, and they govern the procedure after removal. Repleading is not necessary unless the court orders otherwise.
(2)Time to File an Answer. In a removed action, a defendant that has not previously done so must file an answer—or present other defenses or objections available under the Part VII rules. The defendant must do so within the longest of these periods:
(A) 21 days after receiving—by service or otherwise—a copy of the initial pleading that sets forth the claim for relief;
(B) 21 days after a summons on the original pleading was served; or
(C) 7 days after the notice of removal was filed.
(h)Clerk’s Failure to Supply Certified Records of Court Proceedings. If a party is entitled to copies of the records and proceedings in a civil action or proceeding in a federal or state court for use in the removed action or proceeding, the party may demand certified copies from that court’s clerk. After the party pays for them or tenders the fees, if the clerk fails to provide them, the court to which the action or proceeding is removed may—after receiving an affidavit stating these facts—order that the record be supplied by affidavit or otherwise. The court may then proceed to trial and judgment, and may award all process, as if certified copies had been filed.
(i) Property Attached or Sequestered; Security; Injunction.
(1)Property Attached or Sequestered. The court from which a claim or cause of action has been removed must hold attached or sequestered property to answer the final judgment or decree in the same way it would have been held had there been no removal.
(2)Security. Any bond, undertaking, or security given by either party before the removal remains valid.
(3)Injunction. Any injunction or order issued, or other proceeding had, before the removal remains in effect until dissolved or modified by the court.
(As amended Mar. 30, 1987, eff. Aug. 1, 1987; Apr. 30, 1991, eff. Aug. 1, 1991; Apr. 29, 2002, eff. Dec. 1, 2002; Mar. 26, 2009, eff. Dec. 1, 2009; Apr. 28, 2016, eff. Dec. 1, 2016; Apr. 2, 2024, eff. Dec. 1, 2024.)