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Attorney Retention And Disqualification In Bankruptcy, Jessica Stukonis

Bankruptcy Research Library

(Excerpt)

Two essential issues to bankruptcy practitioners are attorney retention and the threat of disqualification. These issues are closely related and are governed by several ethical rules and bankruptcy statutes. Generally, all legal professionals must abide by the standards imposed by their states’ ethical code, which are largely adapted from the American Bar Association Model Rules of Professional Conduct (the “Model Rules”). Bankruptcy practitioners, however, must also abide by section 327 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (the “Code”), which only permits the retention of “disinterested” professionals in a proceeding. If the attorney does not meet these standards, the presiding …