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Judge David D. Cleary

Location and Contact Information
Courtroom 644
Chambers: (312) 435-5534
Courtroom Deputy: (312) 435-5535		 Everett McKinley Dirksen United States Courthouse
219 South Dearborn Street
Chambers 648
Chicago, IL 60604

Staff Information

Courtroom Deputy Law Clerk Law Clerk
Steven Beckerman Benjamin Crumm Debbie Silverstein

Judge Tabs

Chicago Schedule
Courtroom 644
Chapter 13 Cases
Original (new) Trustee Motions Monday at 1:00 p.m.
Original (new) Attorneys/Movants motions: Monday at 1:30 p.m.
Continued Motions and Set Matters: Monday at 2:00 p.m.
Adversary complaints: Monday at 2:00 p.m.
Confirmation: Monday at 2:30 p.m.
Chapter 7 and 11 Cases
Original (new) Motions: Wednesday at 10:00 a.m.
Continued Motions and Set Matters: Wednesday at 10:30 a.m.
Adversary Complaints: Wednesday at 10:30 a.m.
Involuntary Petition Summons Return Date: Wednesday at 10:30 a.m.

 

Notes:
Please do not submit courtesy copies to chambers unless otherwise requested.

Court Calendar

Opinions
Standing Orders/Required Forms

PDF iconPretrial Order

Remote/Zoom Information

Motion calls are held in person and, unless otherwise ordered by the court, can be accessed by Zoom for Government using the following meeting ID and passcode:

Meeting ID: 161 122 6457
Passcode: Cleary644

There are two options to join a court call via Zoom for Government:
--join by website: https://www.zoomgov.com/join (link is external)  (please note the correct domain is zoomgov.com, not zoom.com)
--join by phone: (669) 254-5252 or (646) 828-7666

All Zoom participants are required to identify themselves.

All other proceedings will be conducted in court.

Not Sitting

Procedures
Procedures for Cases Assigned to Judge David D. Cleary
Hearings on Motions
PLEASE SEE  NOT SITTING TAB FOR DATES JUDGE CLEARY IS NOT SITTING
Motions Granted in Chambers Cases Without a Hearing
Routine motions (as defined in Local Rule 9013-9) and other motions to which no objection is expected may be listed as “Will Be Granted Without a Hearing” on the call sheet for the hearing date.
  1. Effect of listing as “Will Be Granted Without a Hearing”:
    1. If no party requests that the motion be called, it will be granted without hearing in open court.
    2. If a party asks the Courtroom Deputy to call the motion, it will be called.
  2. How to check whether a motion “Will Be Granted Without a Hearing”:
    If a motion “Will Be Granted Without a Hearing”, it will be marked as such in Court Calendar the day before the motion is to be presented.
Motions for Relief from Automatic Stay
All motions for relief from the automatic stay must be accompanied by a Required Statement to Accompany All Motions for Relief From Stay as required by the Bankruptcy Court’s Local Rule 4001-1(A).
Motion to Continue Stay in Effect
Motions to continue the automatic stay in effect pursuant to 11 U.S.C. § 362(c)(3) or to impose the automatic stay under § 362(c)(4) should:
  1. State the case number of previous cases dismissed within one year of the filing of the present case;
  2. Include copies of Schedules I and J from previous cases dismissed within one year of the filing of the present case, and Schedules I and J from the current case;
  3. State in detail the basis for continuing the stay in effect or imposing the stay; and
  4. Be accompanied by a factual affidavit from the Debtor(s) explaining the reason(s) why each of the previous cases were dismissed and why the automatic stay should be continued, extended or imposed in the present case.
Withdrawal of Motions or Set Matters
Parties may withdraw a motion and not appear, by moving counsel filing an electronic notice of withdrawal and informing all appropriate parties that the motion is being withdrawn at least 24 hours prior to the hearing. Movant is to also contact the courtroom deputy at (312) 435- 5535 to inform chambers of the withdrawal. Thereafter, the matter will be stricken from the court calendar and/or marked as "withdrawn" on the court calendar.
Service of Motions
For all contested matters (as defined in Bankruptcy Rule 9014), the motion or request must be served in compliance with Bankruptcy Rule 7004. Corporations must be served as required under Bankruptcy Rule 7004(b)(3) on an officer, managing or general agent, or on any agent authorized by appointment or by law to receive service of process. Service on a corporation at a P.O. Box to which payments are sent is not sufficient under Bankruptcy Rule 7004(b)(3). Parties are reminded that they must also comply with Bankruptcy Rule 2002.
Draft Orders to Follow
When a motion has been heard by the court, and the party seeking relief is to present a draft order to follow (D.O.T.F.) after the hearing, the D.O.T.F. is to be filed on the docket and related to the original motion via cm/ecf using the event "Proposed Order," or hand delivered to the clerk’s office before the deadline date.  DOTFs are not to be emailed to chambers. However, parties submitting DOTFs via cm/ecf, should call the Courtroom Deputy to inform them that the draft order has been filed.  If the draft order has not been received by the deadline date, the matter will be put back on the court calendar. Counsel must appear and provide the draft order, or the matter may be dismissed for want of prosecution.
Motions for Approval of Attorneys’ Fees
 Cases filed under Chapters 7, 11 and 12:
All attorneys or other professionals in cases filed under Chapters 7, 11 and 12 seeking approval of their fees must submit an itemization of their time in tenths of an hour and in the format required under Local Rule 5082-1.
 
Cases filed under Chapter 13:
All attorneys seeking approval of their fees in Chapter 13 cases must file an application with an itemization of their time in tenths of an hour, unless a flat fee is authorized pursuant to Local Rule 5082-2. A fully executed Court-Approved Retention Agreement (CARA) revised as of 9/19/16 must be attached if applicable.
Expenses Sought for Faxes, Copying and Computer Research
Requests for reimbursement of the following items of expense pursuant to 11 U.S.C. Section 330(a)(l)(B) will be treated as follows:
  1. Reimbursement of costs associated with photocopying shall be limited to 10 cents per page absent proof of actual expense in a greater amount.
  2. Any cost related to use of computer for legal research shall be considered overhead included in billing rates absent proof of an actual expense attributable to the particular case in which the request is made. This does not limit requests for compensation for time required of counsel to do the research.
Motions for Default Judgment
Pursuant to FRBP 7058, FRCP 58 applies in adversary proceedings. FRCP 58(a) requires that "every judgment and amended judgment must be set out in a separate document." FRCP 58(a) sets forth a list of motions that do not require a separate order from the judgment. That list does not include motions for default judgment. Thus, in order to comply with FRBP 7058 and LBR 9013-1(C)(5) (which requires each motion to have an accompanying proposed order), a motion for default judgment must be accompanied by 2 orders: (a) an order granting the motion for default judgment; and (b) a judgment order.
 
Motions for default judgment must also be accompanied by: (1) an affidavit establishing the default per FRBP 7055(a); (2) if the complaint is not verified, an affidavit establishing the truth of the allegations in the complaint upon which judgment is sought per FRBP 7055(b)(2)(C); and (3) as applicable, an affidavit establishing compliance with the Service Members Civil Relief Act, including an attached Status Report generated in accordance with such Act.
Emergency Motions
See Amended General Order No. 12-01 Regarding Procedures for Emergency Motions, then please contact chambers at (312) 435-5534.
Pretrial Procedures
Status Hearings and Discovery: Each adversary proceeding is set for an initial status hearing and for periodic status hearings thereafter. At the initial status hearing, a discovery cutoff will be set. Discovery cutoffs will generally be extended for cause until a final discovery cutoff is set. At the status hearing following the final cutoff and the close of discovery, a trial date will be scheduled.   
Final Pretrial Procedures will be discussed in open court on a case by case basis. 
Final Pretrial Order
Trial Procedures
Pursuant to trial order entered and/or discussed in open court.
Courtesy Copies (copies to be delivered to chambers)
For all applications for compensation in a Chapter 11, the court requires two (2) physical copies be delivered to the Intake Counter on the 7th Floor contemporaneously with the filing and no less than fourteen (14) days prior to the hearing.   The courtesy copies must include any attachments, exhibits, itemizations, etc., and a proposed order.
For "first day motions" in Chapter 11 cases, the court requires two (2) physical sets of motions and one (1) electronic set of motions be delivered to the Intake Counter on the 7th Floor no less than forty-eight (48) hours in advance of the “first day hearing” on such motions.  If a demonstrable emergency exists, less than forty-eight (48) hours will be accepted, but parties should strive to give the court as much notice as possible.
For filings in excess of fifty (50) pages (inclusive of exhibits), the court requires two (2) physical copies of be delivered to the Intake Counter on the 7th Floor contemporaneously with the filing.
Otherwise, no courtesy copies are required unless specifically requested by the court.
Transcripts
Beginning September 1, 2023, Judge Cleary will no longer be using in-person court reporters. Instead, Judge Cleary will be using the Electronic Court Recording Operator (ECRO) System. Transcripts of proceedings conducted by Judge Cleary when a Court Reporter was not present may be ordered by contacting:

D&E REPORTING
Dirksen Federal Building
219 S. Dearborn-Rm 661
Chicago, IL 60604
(312) 986-1920
email address: D.and.E.Reporting@gmail.com (link sends e-mail)