Adversary complaints to determine the dischargeability of a debt under Section 523, with the 60-day filing deadline measured from the first date set for the meeting of creditors.
Except as otherwise provided in subdivision (d), a complaint to determine the dischargeability of a debt under Section 523(c) shall be filed no later than 60 days after the first date set for the meeting of creditors under Section 341(a). The court shall give all creditors no less than 30 days' notice of the time so fixed in the manner provided in Rule 2002. On motion of a party in interest, after hearing on notice, the court may for cause extend the time fixed under this subdivision. The motion shall be filed before the time has expired. Fed. R. Bankr. P. 4007(c).
Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 4007 is the procedural rule that gives effect to 11 U.S.C. Section 523. Section 523(a) enumerates twenty-one categories of debts that are excepted from the bankruptcy discharge. Some categories are "self-executing" - a debt is nondischargeable as a matter of law regardless of whether any party files an adversary proceeding (e.g., most tax debts under Section 523(a)(1), domestic support obligations under Section 523(a)(5), certain criminal restitution under Section 523(a)(7), and most student loans under Section 523(a)(8)).
Three categories are not self-executing and instead require an affirmative adversary proceeding to determine nondischargeability:
These three categories - identified collectively as "Section 523(c) debts" - require a creditor to file a Rule 4007 adversary complaint within the 60-day deadline. If no complaint is filed, the debt is discharged.
For Section 523(c) categories, the deadline to file a dischargeability complaint is 60 days after the first date set for the meeting of creditors under Section 341(a). The "first date set" controls; rescheduling of the meeting does not restart the deadline. The clerk of the bankruptcy court issues a notice that includes the bar date as part of the initial notice of the case.
Extension of the 60-day deadline is available only on motion filed before the deadline expires, and only for cause. The cause standard is strict; mere oversight or inadvertence is insufficient. Reviewing courts have routinely refused extensions where the motion was filed after the deadline, even by a single day.
A complaint to determine dischargeability of a debt under Section 523(c) may be filed by:
The creditor-plaintiff is the typical posture. A debtor-plaintiff may file defensively to obtain a binding declaration of dischargeability before a creditor pursues post-discharge collection.
For Section 523 categories that are not within Section 523(c) - the self-executing categories - Rule 4007(b) provides that a complaint to determine dischargeability may be filed at any time. There is no deadline for, e.g., a complaint to determine the dischargeability of a tax debt under Section 523(a)(1) or a student loan under Section 523(a)(8). The absence of a deadline reflects the substantive design: these debts are nondischargeable by operation of law, and the proceeding under Rule 4007(b) functions to obtain a binding court declaration where one is needed.
Chapter 13 has a narrower set of nondischargeable debts than Chapter 7. The Section 523(a) exceptions that apply in Chapter 13 are listed in Section 1328(a). Notably, the Section 523(a)(2) fraud exception, the Section 523(a)(4) defalcation exception, and the Section 523(a)(6) willful injury exception do not bar discharge under a standard Section 1328(a) Chapter 13 completion discharge - only under the "hardship discharge" available where the debtor cannot complete the plan, under Section 1328(b)-(c).
This Chapter 13 design is a substantial substantive consequence: a creditor with a colorable Section 523(a)(2), (4), or (6) claim against a Chapter 7 debtor must file a Rule 4007 adversary complaint within 60 days or lose the right. The same creditor against a Chapter 13 debtor who completes a plan has no equivalent procedural option.
Rule 4007(c) requires the court to give all creditors at least 30 days' notice of the deadline to file a Rule 4007(c) complaint. The notice is typically incorporated in the initial notice of the case mailed by the clerk under Rule 2002. A creditor who was not given the required notice may have an argument that the deadline does not bar a later-filed complaint, but the precise contours of the lack-of-notice exception vary by circuit.
A trade creditor extended credit based on a financial statement that materially misstated the debtor's financial condition. After the bankruptcy filing, the creditor identifies the misstatement and files an adversary complaint within 60 days alleging nondischargeability under Section 523(a)(2)(B) (use of materially false written financial statement). The proceeding moves through the standard adversary procedure of Part VII.
A tort plaintiff with an unliquidated personal-injury claim files an adversary complaint within 60 days alleging that the debtor's conduct constituted willful and malicious injury under Section 523(a)(6). Because the underlying tort liability has not been adjudicated, the bankruptcy court may bifurcate liability from damages and determine only the dischargeability question.
Rule 4007 is one of the bright-line deadline rules in bankruptcy procedure: the 60-day deadline for Section 523(c) complaints is strictly enforced, and a creditor who fails to file is effectively barred from challenging dischargeability on fraud, defalcation, or willful-injury grounds. The Advisory Committee Notes and successive Supreme Court decisions have emphasized the importance of the deadline in providing finality to the discharge.
For practitioners, the deadline begins running from the first date set for the meeting of creditors - not from the date of the meeting itself, which may be continued or rescheduled. A creditor evaluating a possible dischargeability action should calendar the deadline immediately upon receipt of the case notice and should file a motion for extension well before the deadline if additional time is needed for pre-suit investigation.
Extension motions must be filed before the deadline expires. Rule 4007(c) authorizes extension "on motion filed before the time has expired." A motion filed after the deadline is procedurally barred from extending it. The rule does not contain a "excusable neglect" provision comparable to other procedural deadlines.
This page provides general information about Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 4007. It does not constitute legal advice. Dischargeability analysis, complaint drafting, and deadline calculation in any specific case should be evaluated by qualified counsel.