PRACTICE AREA FUNDAMENTALS

Bankruptcy Law Fundamentals

P R O F E S S I O N A L L E G A L R E S E A R C H

Bankruptcy is a federal statutory procedure in which an insolventdebtor is relieved of most debts by means of a judicially supervisedreorganization or liquidation for the benefit of the bankrupt’screditors. This quick reference guide highlights the bankruptcycontent on Westlaw and shows you how to retrieve relevantdocuments.

Bankruptcy LawBankruptcy law practice typically involves issues relating to thedebtor–creditor relationship. Bankruptcy issues may overlap manystate and federal practice areas, including litigation, real estatetransactions, landlord-tenant law, intellectual property, andcontracts.

Bankruptcy law resources on WestlawWestlaw includes an extensive collection of bankruptcy lawmaterials, including primary law, secondary sources, public records,forms, and dockets. In each category listed below, a few keydatabases are highlighted. These databases and other bankruptcy-related resources can be accessed at the tabbed BankruptcyPractitioner page, shown on the following page.

Remember that the easiest way to retrieve a specific document whenyou have the citation is to use the Find service. Click Find&Print atthe top of any page to access the Find service.

Statutes and regulationsStatutes are the foundation of federal bankruptcy law. The FederalBankruptcy–U.S. Code Annotated database (FBKR-USCA) containsfederal bankruptcy laws and matters subject to bankruptcyjurisdiction, including rules of procedure for federal courts. TheFederal Bankruptcy–Code of Federal Regulations database (FBKR-CFR) contains documents from the Code of FederalRegulations that relate to federal bankruptcy laws.

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Case lawCourt decisions that construe and review bankruptcy laws,regulations, and agency decisions are another importantsource of information when you research bankruptcy law.The Federal Bankruptcy–Cases database (FBKR-CS) includescases from federal courts that relate to federal bankruptcylaws and matters subject to bankruptcy jurisdiction.

FormsThe Westlaw eforms: Bankruptcy database (FBKR-FRMS)includes bankruptcy-related federal court forms. To quicklyaccess this database, click Official Bankruptcy Forms in theBankruptcy Forms section of the Bankruptcy Practitionerpage.

Secondary sourcesThe Bankruptcy–Law Reviews, Texts, and Bar Journalsdatabase (BKR-TP) includes analytical texts, law reviews,and legal periodicals that discuss federal bankruptcy lawsand matters subject to bankruptcy jurisdiction. Among theleading texts and treatises available on Westlaw is NortonBankruptcy Law and Practice 3d, a comprehensive survey ofall aspects of bankruptcy law and procedure, available in theNorton Bankruptcy Law and Practice 3d database (NRTN-BLP) database. The 2005 Bankruptcy ReformLegislation with Analysis treatise, available in the 2005Bankruptcy Reform Legislation with Analysis database(BAPCPA), analyzes the changes made by the BankruptcyAbuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 tothe Bankruptcy Code.

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For assistance using Westlaw, call 1-800-850-WEST (1-800-850-9378).For free reference materials, visit west.thomson.com/westlaw/guides.

Bankruptcy Practitioner page

To retrieve articles that discussrecent developments inbankruptcy law, select a topicfrom the drop-down list andclick Go.

To retrieve a bankruptcy form,type the name of a form in theEnter a form name text box,then select a forms databasefrom the drop-down list andclick Go.