Standing Order 24-17, titled, Order Amending Judge Assignment Protocol for Mega Chapter 11 Cases, which takes effect January 10, 2025, sets forth the following amendments to the existing protocol: (1) “M]ega chapter 11 cases will be assigned randomly among the Judges of this Court without regard to the Division in which the case is filed.” (2) Once so “assigned, the case will be assigned to the Division in which the presiding judge is resident.” (3) “[T]he Honorable Stephen C. St. John (the “Assigning Judge”) will perform the random assignment of mega chapter 11 cases . . . .  [and, for this reason, will be] ineligible to receive a mega case assignment.” (4) Further, for the reason cited in the Order, “the Assigning Judge will determine when the case assignment module should be reset for the assignment of non-mega chapter 11 cases in the Division in which the mega case is pending. . . .” In addition, “the Court will adopt the amendments to Exhibits 15 and 16 to the Local Bankruptcy Rules . . .  attached . . . [thereto] as Exhibit A to effectuate the provisions of this Standing Order.” The Order is accessible on the Court’s internet website, under the News & Announcements header, and on the Court’s Standing Orders webpage, under the District-Based Standing Orders header.

[Read Standing Order 24-17 PDF]