Abstract
In this Article, the Author attempts to demonstrate that bankruptcy courts regularly hear cases in which the court and the parties could benefit from the services of a special master and that bankruptcy courts are hampered in their ability to handle cases in the most just and efficient manner possible because of their inability to appoint special master. Part II of this Article examines the role of the special master in the federal courts generally. It examines the scope of tasks traditionally performed by special masters, as well as the expanded role that special masters have played in recent years as the courts increasingly have relied on special masters in case management. Part III examines the nature of complex bankruptcy cases and the role that special masters could play in these cases Part IV provides background on the history and rationale for Rule 9031. Part V explores the roles of the examiner and trustee in bankruptcy, and compares those roles with the role of the special master. Part VI discusses the concept of the federal courts’ inherent authority to appoint persons to assist the court in performing specific, well-delineated judicial tasks in furtherance of the efficient administration of cases.
Recommended Citation
Paulette J. Delk,
Special Masters in Bankruptcy: The Case against Bankruptcy Rule 9031,
67 Mo. L. Rev.
(2002)
Available at: https://scholarship.law.missouri.edu/mlr/vol67/iss1/8