Sen. Carper Commends Key Committee Approval of Bankruptcy Judgeships Legislation

WASHINGTON – Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) commended the Senate Judiciary Committee for approving the Temporary Bankruptcy Judgeships Extension Act of 2011, which would extend 30 key bankruptcy judgeships, including five in Delaware. Delaware’s bankruptcy courts take up more than one-third of the nation’s largest bankruptcies cases. The bill was introduced by Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) last month. Sens. Carper, Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.), Richard Burr (R-N.C.), Lindsay Graham (R-S.C.), Kay Hagan (D-N.C.), Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), and Dean Heller (R-Nev.) are cosponsors of the bill. It now goes to the full Senate for consideration.

“In this challenging economic climate, businesses need more certainty, not less,” said Sen. Carper. “To that end, businesses need a regulatory and legal environment that operates efficiently and effectively. It is imperative that we have an adequate number of judgeships to maintain a fair and expeditious process to handle bankruptcy cases. Failing to extend these judgeships would not be in the interest of our legal or business communities and would negatively impact our broader economy. The last thing we need to do at this moment is to disrupt the legal systems and institutions that businesses — large and small — depend on to adapt to shifting economic conditions. I thank Senator Coons for his leadership on this issue and I will work with my Senate colleagues to ensure that this important legislation passes.”

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