Does a motion to withdraw the reference pause my bankruptcy case?

No. Local rules state that filing the motion, or a bankruptcy judge's recommendation for withdrawal, does not stay proceedings in the bankruptcy court (S.D. Ind. B-5011-1; W.D. Mich. LBR 5011). A stay has to be requested separately under the procedure the local rule points to. One court's guidance notes the case keeps moving until the district court grants the motion.

Who actually decides the motion, and is there a hearing?

A district judge decides. The bankruptcy clerk transmits the motion to the district court clerk, who assigns it to a district judge (Ariz. LBR 5011-1; N.D. Cal. BLR 5011-2). Unless the district court orders otherwise, these motions are commonly decided without a hearing, and a party wanting oral argument is generally expected to say so in the motion or response (Mont. LBR 5011-1; W.D. Wash. LBR 5011-1).

Can a bankruptcy judge send a matter to the district court without anyone asking?

Yes, in districts whose rules allow it. A bankruptcy judge may recommend to the district court that a case or proceeding be withdrawn, and that recommendation is served on the parties and forwarded to the district court clerk (Ariz. LBR 5011-1; N.D. Cal. BLR 5011-2). In one district the judge may also file a recommendation on the status of the case and the need for expedited resolution (W.D. Wash. LBR 5011-1).

Does withdrawal of the reference mean the dispute gets a jury trial?

Not by itself. The local rules in our corpus set out the procedure for asking, transmitting, briefing, and deciding these motions; they do not state the grounds a district judge applies, and we do not publish the federal statutory text on jury trials in bankruptcy. A jury demand is one reason parties raise the question, but whether one is available is decided by the district judge on the filings.

Is there a deadline to file the motion?

Yes, and it varies by district. Common formulations are promptly after service of the pleading in which the basis first arises (Mont. LBR 5011-1), within 14 days of the first related pleading, with a late request deemed waived (S.D. Ill. LBR 5011), and, for a whole case, a window tied to the meeting of creditors (N.D. Fla. LBR 5011-1; M.D. Fla. LBR 5011-1; W.D. Mich. LBR 5011).

What happens to the paperwork if the motion is denied?

The matter returns to the bankruptcy court. In one district, if the motion is denied the district court clerk transmits the motion and the materials originally sent back to the bankruptcy clerk (N.D. Fla. LBR 5011-1). Where a district court does enter a dispositive order, the clerk sends a copy to the parties and transmits a copy to the bankruptcy court for filing in the case (Mont. LBR 5011-1).

Fundamentals

Withdrawal of the reference: when a bankruptcy dispute moves to district court

Withdrawal of the reference is a federal district court's decision to take a bankruptcy case, an adversary proceeding, or a single contested matter away from the bankruptcy judge and hear it itself. A party asks by motion filed with the bankruptcy clerk, who transmits it to the district court, where a district judge decides, commonly without a hearing. It is rare in consumer cases.

Key points

The motion is filed with the bankruptcy court clerk, not the district court, and the clerk transmits it upward (Ariz. LBR 5011-1; Del. Bankr. L.R. 5011-1).
Filing the motion does not pause the bankruptcy case, which keeps moving unless a separate stay is granted (S.D. Ind. B-5011-1; W.D. Mich. LBR 5011).
A district judge decides, may grant or deny the motion in whole or in part, and commonly rules without oral argument (Mont. LBR 5011-1).
Deadlines are short, vary by district, and are keyed to events such as the pleading that first raises the issue or the meeting of creditors.
A bankruptcy judge can recommend withdrawal without any party asking (Ariz. LBR 5011-1; N.D. Cal. BLR 5011-2).

If a docket entry or a letter mentions a motion to withdraw the reference, it means someone is asking a district judge to take over part of a bankruptcy matter. In consumer Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 cases this is uncommon, and it is not an appeal, a dismissal, or a sign that anything has gone wrong with your filing. This page explains what the term means and how the procedure runs.

What is withdrawal of the reference, exactly?

District courts send bankruptcy cases to the bankruptcy judges of the district under a standing order of general reference, and local rules describe the cases and proceedings that follow as "referred to the Bankruptcy Court" (N.D. Fla. LBR 5011-1; M.D. Fla. LBR 5011-1). Withdrawal of the reference is the district court taking some or all of that referred work back. Local rules frame it as a motion to withdraw a case or proceeding, filed with the bankruptcy clerk, who forwards it to the district court clerk for assignment to a district judge (Ariz. LBR 5011-1; Del. Bankr. L.R. 5011-1). It can be partial. Districts distinguish between withdrawing an entire bankruptcy case and withdrawing one adversary proceeding or contested matter inside it, and they set different deadlines for each (M.D. Fla. LBR 5011-1; W.D. Mich. LBR 5011). Nothing about it is automatic. A district judge may grant or deny the motion in whole or in part, in that judge's discretion (Mont. LBR 5011-1).

Why does it matter in a bankruptcy case?

Most consumer bankruptcies never involve it, and that is the first useful thing to know. When it does happen, it changes who decides a dispute and where the paperwork lives. Once the clerk transmits the motion, further filings about the withdrawal go to the district court clerk, while everything else in the bankruptcy case continues to be filed with the bankruptcy court (S.D. Cal. LBR 5011-1; S.C. LBR 5011-1). That split is what most often confuses people reading two dockets at once. Filing the motion also does not pause anything. Local rules say plainly that a motion, or a bankruptcy judge's recommendation, for withdrawal does not stay proceedings in the bankruptcy court, and that a stay must be requested separately (S.D. Ind. B-5011-1; W.D. Mich. LBR 5011). One court's public guidance puts it directly: the case continues to move forward until the district court grants the motion (Bankr. S.D. Ind. official page — Motion for Withdrawal of Reference).

How does the process work, step by step?

The sequence is similar across districts even though the deadlines are not. A party in interest files a motion with the bankruptcy court clerk, and in several districts must state clearly and conspicuously that relief is being sought from a district judge (W.D. Mich. LBR 5011; Bankr. S.D. Ind. official page — Motion for Withdrawal of Reference). Some districts also require a designation of the portions of the record a district judge will need, served on the debtor, the debtor's attorney, any trustee, and other interested parties (S.C. LBR 5011-1; S.D. Ind. B-5011-1). A filing fee is due where the local rule says so (S.D. Ohio LBR 5011–1; R.I. LBR 5011-1). After the response and reply period closes, the clerk transmits the motion and the designated record to the district court, which assigns a district judge, and the motion is commonly decided without oral argument (Mont. LBR 5011-1; W.D. Wash. LBR 5011-1; N.D. Cal. BLR 5011-2).

Response and reply windows in a sample of districts that publish them
District rule	Response due	Reply due
Mont. LBR 5011-1	14 days after service of the motion	7 days after service of the response
S.D. Ohio LBR 5011–1	14 days from the date of service	7 days after service of the response
S.D. Cal. LBR 5011-1	14 days from service of the motion	7 days after service of the response
S.D. Ind. B-5011-1	14 days after the movant serves the motion	14 days after service of a response
W.D. Wash. LBR 5011-1	14 days after service of the motion	21 days after filing of the motion
E.D. Mo. L.R. 5011	7 days after service of the motion	Not specified in the rule

What are the main exceptions or limits?

Three limits matter most. Timing is the first. Deadlines are short and keyed to events rather than to convenience: promptly after service of the pleading in which the basis for the motion first arises (Mont. LBR 5011-1; W.D. Wash. LBR 5011-1), within 14 days of the first related pleading or response in another district, where a late request is deemed waived (S.D. Ill. LBR 5011), and by the time first set for the meeting of creditors when an entire case is at issue (W.D. Mich. LBR 5011). Discretion is the second. A district judge may grant or deny in whole or in part and make such orders as the orderly disposition of the case requires (Mont. LBR 5011-1). Third, withdrawal is not the only route a matter can take out of the bankruptcy court. A court may instead abstain, dismissing or suspending a case where the interests of creditors and the debtor would be better served (11 U.S.C. § 305).

How is a core proceeding different from a non-core proceeding here?

Local rules treat that distinction as a trigger for timing rather than as something they define. In one district, a motion to withdraw a proceeding must be filed no later than the date set for filing an answer, or within 21 days after the bankruptcy court has made a determination that a proceeding is a non-core matter (N.D. Fla. LBR 5011-1). The practical reading is that a non-core determination is a moment when a party's reason for wanting a district judge can first arise, and the clock starts running then. Our published corpus contains these local procedures, not the federal statutory text that defines core and non-core proceedings, so we do not state that test here. If the distinction is being argued in a case, the filings will say so, and the dockets will show which court is handling which piece. A bankruptcy court also retains its general authority to issue orders carrying out the Bankruptcy Code (11 U.S.C. § 105).

How does it differ between Chapter 7 and Chapter 13?

The mechanism itself is the same in both chapters. What differs is the calendar around it. Several districts key the deadline for withdrawing an entire case to the meeting of creditors, which occurs in Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 alike: no later than 30 days after that meeting concludes in one district (N.D. Fla. LBR 5011-1), no later than 21 days after the notice of the meeting in another (M.D. Fla. LBR 5011-1), and by the time first set for the meeting in a third (W.D. Mich. LBR 5011). Court costs are a separate question and do not change because a motion is filed. Opening a Chapter 7 case costs $245 (28 U.S.C. § 1930(a)(1)(A), (f)(1)) plus a $78 administrative fee and a $15 trustee surcharge (Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, Item 8; Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, Item 9). A Chapter 13 case costs $235 (28 U.S.C. § 1930(a)(1)(B)) plus the same $78 administrative fee.

What do people most commonly get wrong about it?

The recurring misunderstandings are procedural rather than technical, and each one has a local rule that answers it directly. Reading the wrong court's docket is the most common practical error, because after transmittal the withdrawal papers and the rest of the bankruptcy case live in two different clerk's offices (S.C. LBR 5011-1). The second most common is assuming the case is frozen while a district judge thinks about it, which the rules expressly reject. One more worth naming: the withdrawal motion is not something a consumer debtor typically files, and receiving notice of one does not require the debtor to respond in every district, though one rule gives the debtor 14 days to do so (N.D. Fla. LBR 5011-1).

It is not an appeal. It moves a matter sideways to a district judge, not upward for review of a decision already made (Ariz. LBR 5011-1).
It is not automatic. A district judge decides, and may deny it outright (Mont. LBR 5011-1).
It does not stop the bankruptcy case (S.D. Ind. B-5011-1; W.D. Mich. LBR 5011).
A denial sends everything back. One clerk transmits the motion and record back to the bankruptcy court (N.D. Fla. LBR 5011-1).

Frequently asked questions

Does a motion to withdraw the reference pause my bankruptcy case?: No. Local rules state that filing the motion, or a bankruptcy judge's recommendation for withdrawal, does not stay proceedings in the bankruptcy court (S.D. Ind. B-5011-1; W.D. Mich. LBR 5011). A stay has to be requested separately under the procedure the local rule points to. One court's guidance notes the case keeps moving until the district court grants the motion.
Who actually decides the motion, and is there a hearing?: A district judge decides. The bankruptcy clerk transmits the motion to the district court clerk, who assigns it to a district judge (Ariz. LBR 5011-1; N.D. Cal. BLR 5011-2). Unless the district court orders otherwise, these motions are commonly decided without a hearing, and a party wanting oral argument is generally expected to say so in the motion or response (Mont. LBR 5011-1; W.D. Wash. LBR 5011-1).
Can a bankruptcy judge send a matter to the district court without anyone asking?: Yes, in districts whose rules allow it. A bankruptcy judge may recommend to the district court that a case or proceeding be withdrawn, and that recommendation is served on the parties and forwarded to the district court clerk (Ariz. LBR 5011-1; N.D. Cal. BLR 5011-2). In one district the judge may also file a recommendation on the status of the case and the need for expedited resolution (W.D. Wash. LBR 5011-1).
Does withdrawal of the reference mean the dispute gets a jury trial?: Not by itself. The local rules in our corpus set out the procedure for asking, transmitting, briefing, and deciding these motions; they do not state the grounds a district judge applies, and we do not publish the federal statutory text on jury trials in bankruptcy. A jury demand is one reason parties raise the question, but whether one is available is decided by the district judge on the filings.
Is there a deadline to file the motion?: Yes, and it varies by district. Common formulations are promptly after service of the pleading in which the basis first arises (Mont. LBR 5011-1), within 14 days of the first related pleading, with a late request deemed waived (S.D. Ill. LBR 5011), and, for a whole case, a window tied to the meeting of creditors (N.D. Fla. LBR 5011-1; M.D. Fla. LBR 5011-1; W.D. Mich. LBR 5011).
What happens to the paperwork if the motion is denied?: The matter returns to the bankruptcy court. In one district, if the motion is denied the district court clerk transmits the motion and the materials originally sent back to the bankruptcy clerk (N.D. Fla. LBR 5011-1). Where a district court does enter a dispositive order, the clerk sends a copy to the parties and transmits a copy to the bankruptcy court for filing in the case (Mont. LBR 5011-1).

Sources

Mont. LBR 5011-1 — Withdrawal of Reference
S.D. Ind. B-5011-1 — Withdrawal of Reference
W.D. Wash. LBR 5011-1 — Withdrawal of Reference
N.D. Fla. LBR 5011-1 — Local Bankruptcy Rule 5011-1
Ariz. LBR 5011-1 — Withdrawal of Reference Procedure
D. Conn. Bankr. L. R. 5011-1 — Withdrawal of Reference
W.D. Mich. LBR 5011 — Withdrawal of Reference
S.D. Cal. LBR 5011-1 — Withdrawal of Reference
S.D. Ohio LBR 5011–1 — Withdrawal of Reference
Bankr. S.D. Ind. official page — Motion for Withdrawal of Reference
N.D. Cal. BLR 5011-2 — Motions for Withdrawal of Reference
E.D. Mo. L.R. 5011 — Withdrawal of Reference
M.D. Fla. LBR 5011-1 — Withdrawal of Reference
S.C. LBR 5011-1 — Withdrawal of Reference
S.D. Ill. LBR 5011 — Withdrawal of Reference
R.I. LBR 5011-1 — Withdrawal of Reference
Del. Bankr. L.R. 5011-1 — Motion for Withdrawal of Reference
11 U.S.C. § 305 — Abstention
11 U.S.C. § 105 — Power of court
28 U.S.C. § 1930(a)(1)(A), (f)(1)
28 U.S.C. § 1930(a)(1)(B)
Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, Item 8
Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule, Item 9

By Antonio G. Jimenez, Esq. · Florida Bar No. 21022

Sources verified July 27, 2026 · How we verify

Every figure on this page is drawn from a primary legal source and checked against our canonical legal database before publication. Bankruptcy.law is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.

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