Miami-Dade County, Florida

Which bankruptcy court hears a case from Miami-Dade County?

Miami-Dade County is assigned to the Miami Division of the Southern District of Florida (S.D. Fla. LBR 1071-1 (Miami Division)). That is the division whose caption and procedures govern a Miami-Dade filing, and the local rules of that court apply to all Title 11 cases pending there (S.D. Fla. LBR 1001-1).

Residence is not the whole rule. Venue under 28 U.S.C. § 1408 looks to the district in which your domicile, residence, principal place of business in the United States, or principal assets in the United States were located for the 180 days immediately before the case is commenced, or for a longer portion of that period than any other district. A recent move into or out of Miami-Dade County, or a business or principal assets located elsewhere, can therefore point to a different district than the one you live in today. A voluntary case begins when the petition is filed with the bankruptcy court, and that filing is itself the order for relief (11 U.S.C. § 301).

What does this court require of someone filing without a lawyer?

The Code itself tells you that self-representation is one of three recognised choices: you can represent yourself, hire an attorney, or in some localities get help from a bankruptcy petition preparer who is not an attorney (11 U.S.C. § 527).

This district builds specific accommodations for unrepresented debtors into its noticing rules. For unrepresented debtors, the clerk serves any Chapter 13 plan, amended plan or modified plan, and the local certificate-of-compliance and discharge-motion forms (S.D. Fla. LBR 2002-1). Where a debtor has an attorney, those service duties fall on the attorney instead. One protection also runs the other way: a motion filed on negative notice must not seek relief against an unrepresented debtor (S.D. Fla. LBR 9013-3).

Formatting still applies to anything you create for electronic filing — text-searchable PDF, one-inch margins, 12-point font and double spacing, with a caption naming the division (S.D. Fla. LBR 9004-1).

What does it cost to file, and can the fee be waived or paid over time?

The Chapter 7 filing fee is $245 (28 U.S.C. § 1930(a)(1)(A), (f)(1)) and the Chapter 13 filing fee is $235 (28 U.S.C. § 1930(a)(1)(B)). A $78 administrative fee is collected for a Chapter 7 petition and a $78 administrative fee for a Chapter 13 petition (Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, Item 8), plus a $15 trustee payment on a Chapter 7 petition (Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, Item 9).

Individual Chapter 7 debtors who meet certain financial requirements may apply for a waiver of the filing and certain other fees, using the official application and the Judicial Conference policy (Bankr. S.D. Fla. official page — Chapter 7 Fee Waiver).

Only individual debtors, including spouses filing jointly, may apply to pay in installments, and this clerk requires a minimum initial payment of one half the filing fee at the time the petition is filed (Bankr. S.D. Fla. official page — Paying Filing Fee in Installments). Either application may be considered without a hearing (S.D. Fla. LBR 9013-2).

How does the meeting of creditors work in this district?

After the order for relief, the United States trustee convenes and presides at a meeting of creditors within a reasonable time (11 U.S.C. § 341). The bankruptcy judge may not preside at or attend it. Before the meeting ends, the trustee examines a Chapter 7 debtor orally to confirm awareness of the consequences of seeking a discharge, the option of a different chapter, the effect of a discharge, and the effect of reaffirming a debt.

Rescheduling is handled locally and in a specific order. In a Chapter 7, 12 or 13 case the request goes to the trustee, with a copy to the United States trustee; only if that request is denied may a party file a motion with the court, and a granted request must be served under Bankruptcy Rule 2002(a)(1) (S.D. Fla. LBR 2003-1). Notice of a continued meeting is served by the debtor's attorney (S.D. Fla. LBR 2002-1).

This court's packet does not state a meeting location, time or trustee assignment, so confirm those from your own case notice.

What local rules and orders change the process here?

The biggest recent change is wholesale: amended and restated local rules of practice and procedure, together with new and amended local forms, guidelines and clerk's instructions, took effect in this district on June 1, 2026 (Bankr. S.D. Fla. AO 2026-01). Anything you downloaded earlier may be the wrong version.

Several local requirements attach to documents a consumer filer actually produces:

• A promulgated local form must be used without material alteration unless the court orders otherwise or alteration is authorised (S.D. Fla. LBR 9009-1).
• An individual debtor must file the local Declaration Regarding Payment Advices even if no employer payment advices were received in the 60 days before the petition date (S.D. Fla. LBR 1007-1).
• Amending Schedule D or E/F requires the local notice-of-compliance form, and adding or changing a creditor triggers service duties plus a certificate of service (S.D. Fla. LBR 1007-1; S.D. Fla. LBR 1009-1).
• A certificate of service must identify the document, the manner, the date and every recipient, and may not simply say service was made on all parties on the matrix (S.D. Fla. LBR 9036-2).
• The district uses a standard local Chapter 13 Plan form (Bankr. S.D. Fla. official page — All Forms - Local Bankruptcy Forms).

Which Florida questions should you settle before filing?

Two or three state-law questions decide most of what a Florida filer keeps, and they are worth settling before you choose a chapter.

First, which exemption list applies to you — that turns on how long Florida has been your home, not on where you file. Second, Florida's homestead protection carries no state-law dollar ceiling but is defined by acreage and by constitutional creditor exceptions, and federal bankruptcy caps sit on top of it (Fla. Const. art. X, § 4(a)(1)). Third, whether you claim homestead changes your personal-property position: Florida's constitutional personal-property exemption is $1,000 (Fla. Const. art. X, § 4(a)(2)), a single motor vehicle is covered to $5,000 (Fla. Stat. § 222.25(1)), and a separate $4,000 personal-property exemption applies where no homestead is claimed (Fla. Stat. § 222.25(4)).

Wage protection and the categories with no stated cap — retirement funds, workers' compensation, life-insurance cash value — are set out on the Florida pages rather than restated here.

Where can a Miami-Dade County resident get help?

Start with what you can settle yourself. Your court is identified above; the court finder confirms a division for any county, and the cost estimator works through the fees and administrative amounts for each chapter. A roadmap conversation records your own numbers and turns them into the questions worth asking next.

If student loans are part of the picture, this district runs a Student Loan Program for individual Chapter 13 debtors, designed to facilitate mediation of private student loans and to encourage use of available federal repayment programs before or during a case; participating debtors must have paid the filing fee in full (Bankr. S.D. Fla. AO 2021-02).

When a question needs judgment rather than information, Arthur can explain what you are reading and, if you ask for it, offer an introduction to a bankruptcy firm admitted in this district. We are an information platform, not a law firm, and nothing here is legal advice for your case.

Frequently asked questions

Does living in Miami-Dade County guarantee my case is filed in the Southern District of Florida?

No. Miami-Dade County is assigned to the Miami Division of the Southern District of Florida, but venue under 28 U.S.C. § 1408 depends on where your domicile, residence, principal place of business or principal assets were located for the greater part of the 180 days before filing. A recent move or a business elsewhere can change which district is proper.

Can I file in this district without an attorney?

Yes. The Code recognises that you may represent yourself, hire an attorney, or in some localities use a bankruptcy petition preparer who is not an attorney (11 U.S.C. § 527). This district's local rules direct the clerk to serve certain documents for unrepresented debtors, and bar negative-notice motions seeking relief against an unrepresented debtor.

What if I cannot pay the filing fee at once?

Individual debtors, including spouses filing jointly, may apply to pay in installments, and this clerk requires at least one half the filing fee at the time the petition is filed. Individual Chapter 7 debtors meeting certain financial requirements may instead apply for a waiver. Either application may be considered without a hearing in this district.

Will a judge be at my meeting of creditors?

No. The court may not preside at or attend a meeting under 11 U.S.C. § 341. The United States trustee convenes and presides, and the trustee examines a Chapter 7 debtor orally before the meeting concludes about the consequences of a discharge, the option of another chapter, and the effect of reaffirming a debt.

Can my 341 meeting be moved?

In a Chapter 7, 12 or 13 case the request goes first to the trustee, with a copy to the United States trustee. Only if that request is denied may a party file a motion to reschedule with the court. If a request or motion is granted, the requesting party must serve notice of the rescheduled meeting (S.D. Fla. LBR 2003-1).

Are the local rules I downloaded last year still current?

Check the version. Amended and restated local rules of practice and procedure, with new and amended local forms, court guidelines and clerk's instructions, took effect in this district on June 1, 2026 under Bankr. S.D. Fla. AO 2026-01, and they govern cases commenced after that date and, so far as just and practicable, pending ones.

Sources

• S.D. Fla. LBR 1071-1 (Miami Division)
• 28 U.S.C. § 1408
• 11 U.S.C. § 301
• 11 U.S.C. § 341 · official source
• 11 U.S.C. § 527 · official source
• S.D. Fla. LBR 1001-1
• S.D. Fla. LBR 1007-1
• S.D. Fla. LBR 1009-1
• S.D. Fla. LBR 2002-1
• S.D. Fla. LBR 2003-1
• S.D. Fla. LBR 9004-1
• S.D. Fla. LBR 9009-1
• S.D. Fla. LBR 9013-2
• S.D. Fla. LBR 9013-3
• S.D. Fla. LBR 9036-2
• Bankr. S.D. Fla. AO 2026-01
• Bankr. S.D. Fla. AO 2021-02
• Bankr. S.D. Fla. official page — Chapter 7 Fee Waiver
• Bankr. S.D. Fla. official page — Paying Filing Fee in Installments
• Bankr. S.D. Fla. official page — All Forms - Local Bankruptcy Forms
• 28 U.S.C. § 1930(a)(1)(A), (f)(1) · official source
• 28 U.S.C. § 1930(a)(1)(B) · official source
• Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, Item 8
• Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, Item 9
• Fla. Const. art. X, § 4(a)(1)
• Fla. Const. art. X, § 4(a)(2)
• Fla. Stat. § 222.25(1)
• Fla. Stat. § 222.25(4)

Related

• Find your local bankruptcy court
• Filing cost calculator
• The 180-day venue rule and exemption lookback periods
• The 341 meeting of creditors: what actually happens
• Build your personalised roadmap
• Find a bankruptcy lawyer by state

What it costs to file here

Chapter 7 — total court charges at filing

$338

28 U.S.C. § 1930(a)(1)(A), (f)(1); Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, Item 8; Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, Item 9

Chapter 13 — total court charges at filing

$313

28 U.S.C. § 1930(a)(1)(B); Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, Item 8

Court charges only. What a lawyer charges is separate and varies by district and by case. Estimate the full cost →

Florida median income

Median annual income, household of one

$69,876

USTP Median Family Income (2026-07-15 period)

The means test compares household income to the published median for the same household size. Being above it is not a bar to filing. Compare your household →

What Florida law protects

This state has opted out of the federal exemption list for debtors whose applicable exemption law is this state's law. Which state's law applies is set by 11 U.S.C. § 522(b)(3)(A) from where the filer was domiciled before filing, not from where they live today — and § 522(b)(3) still allows the federal list where that domicile rule would otherwise leave a debtor with no exemptions at all.

All Florida exemptions, with their statutes →