Bankruptcy Web Bookmarks

<p>What are the best stops on the web for bankruptcy information and reorganization
resources? The answer lies in your purpose. There are sites that deliver the Code,
recent filings and important case law updates. There are commercial sites that blatantly
prey upon "bankruptcy information" as a key word and are targeted at troubled consumers
who are then steered to online credit counselors. The proliferation of these sites
complicates the search process for quality and reliable information, so I've compiled
the listing of my favorites below to help you get the most out of your web time.

</p><p>As a reorganization professional, I depend on certain sites that always deliver just
what I am looking for. For the most part, I've discovered that the best sites
are those that specialize in a narrow range of information. The more limited the
topic, the better the information. I make extensive use of these sites by using
bookmarks or placing the web address in my favorites folder.

</p><h3>PACER</h3>

<p><i>pacer.psc.uscourts.gov</i>. PACER (Public Access of Court Electronic Records) is
the only place on the web for official court information. Other services extract
PACER data or obtain hard-copy filings from the courts. Therefore, a working
knowledge of PACER is both cost-efficient and carries the weight of official
information.

</p><p>PACER is a common national system, but each court maintains its own information
under the auspices of the clerk of the court. Although each court maintains its own
web site,<small>^{<a href="#2" name="2a">2</a>}</small> almost all of the courts use the PACER system so that the organization
of the data and the search routines are fairly consistent among the courts.

</p><p>If you are interested in a particular case, you must know in which court the case
was filed. For instance, a corporation organized in Delaware has the option of a
Delaware filing, so the address of the corporate headquarters may not be a good
indication of where the case is filed.

</p><p>PACER is fee-based, and therefore is best used to download specific data, like
a creditor or docket listing. Downloading this information for use in spreadsheets or word
processing programs can be an enormous time-saver. To do this, simply highlight the
information you want copied and then click edit/copy on your browser. The information is
then copied to the Windows clipboard and can be pasted to your spreadsheet or word
processing program. The current fee structure is $.07 per page displayed, so make sure
you have a good idea of what you want to do before you sign on. Before you begin
your search, you can assign job numbers or client codes to the cost of each page
displayed, which can help you recover your costs at a later date.

</p><p>Before you access the court records, you must become a PACER subscriber. The
application is free and online, but you must register for each court you are likely
to do business in. Because bankruptcy is evolving more into an interstate business,
I would suggest registering for all courts.

</p><p>The best way to access PACER is to go through each court's web site. There is
plenty of free information including address and map information to the court, court
hours and names of judges and trustees, local rules and forms. All of the court
web sites contain bankruptcy primers that are good sources of information for new
debtors, creditors and the general public. You will also find valuable links to local
bankruptcy organizations. For instance, on the California Central District web site,
you will find a link to the Los Angeles Bankruptcy Forum and the Orange County
Bankruptcy Forum. If your firm has a web site, you should provide a link to the
local court.

</p><h3>EDGAR</h3>

<p><i>www.sec.gov</i&gt;. EDGAR is an acronym for Electronic Data Gathering and Reporting
and is the online reporting and retrieval system for companies that file Securities and
Exchange Commission (SEC) reports. Access is free and the retrieval and download
of company reports is very easy. I prefer EDGAR over the for-profit reporting
systems because (1) the information is not abbreviated and (2) I can copy the
report to my hard drive for offline access and later extract verbatim quotes.

</p><p>Because EDGAR facilitates a search based on the type of report, it is fairly
easy to search for 8-k filings (significant events not reported elsewhere) and
10-q filings (quarterly reports). These reports most often contain the warnings
issued by financial management of pending financial difficulty. Additionally, significant
contracts and agreements are required to be filed as attachments. This means that you
can probably get an electronic version of the latest credit agreement or executive
compensation agreement and maintain an electronic file instead of paper.

</p><p>After the SEC home page loads, simply click on "search EDGAR," and then
"Quick Forms Lookup." You'll be prompted to key in the first 20 characters of the
company you are searching for and the SEC form number. You can leave the form
number blank, and you will get a search result of all forms filed in the last three
years. I am sure you will find this to be a very fast and easy-to-use site.

</p><h3>ABI World</h3>

<p><i>www.abiworld.org</i&gt;. ABI World is the official site of ABI. The site contains
discussion boards on business and personal bankruptcy, access to publications, certified
insolvency professionals, and the membership roster. The site has a rich reservoir of
bankruptcy statistics.

</p><p>ABI World offers a free e-mail newsletter for members that I have found very
useful. The newsletter kept me abreast of the changes to and progress of bankruptcy reform legislation.

</p><h3>Hoovers</h3>

<p><i>www.hoovers.com</i&gt;. Hoovers offers both a free and a paid subscription service, and
reports on both public and private companies. Because I find EDGAR so easy to
use, I use only the free subscription.

</p><p>Hoovers provides excellent contact and brief business summary information. If the
company you are researching has a web site, a link appears just below the street
address. Additionally, Hoovers classifies companies into standardized classifications and
tells you who the major competitors are. It is very easy to become completely
familiar with all the major players in an industry—in less than an afternoon's work.

</p><p>Hoovers also provides a free e-mail service that can be tailored to alert you to
references made to specific companies or industries. I advise you to be specific and
narrow in your criteria regarding these e-mail alerts. Use of a broad subject like
"bankruptcy" or "reorganization" or an industry such as "telecommunications" will leave
you inundated with too much information. Use a specific company name to get the best
result.

</p><h3>Floptracker</h3>

<p><i>www.thestandard.com/trackers/flop</i&gt;. There are scores of sites that purport to report on the
dot-com bubble burst. I have found most of these sites to be nothing more than
rumor-posting opportunities for disgruntled employees and investors. The fact is many
of these sites ultimately provide you with a link to the Floptracker, which is
published by a reliable source, <i>The Standard.</i> This is the best list of dot-com
failures. You can search by company name or review the chronological list.

</p><p><i>The Standard</i> has been publishing specialized lists and industry coverage since
1998 and was founded by true computer industry pioneers.

</p><h3>The Turnaround Management Association</h3>

<p><i>www.turnaround.org</i&gt;. The Turnaround Management Association (TMA) is the only
international nonprofit association dedicated to the development of a stronger economy
through the restoration of corporate value.

</p><p>This site is geared primarily to the service of TMA's membership, but it can
be a useful research tool for non-members as well.

</p><p>There is an excellent resource listing called "related sites." You'll find a
complete listing of resources including accountants, auctioneers, consultants,
lenders, collection specialists, law firms and venture capitalists.

</p><h3>Legal Information Institute</h3>

<p><i>www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/11</i>. This is an excellent online publication of the
Bankruptcy Code. The site has a very good search engine. Hyperlinks by Code
section number are available, and what I particularly like is that Code sections
referenced in the text are also hyperlinked. The site is fast and efficient.

</p><h3>BankruptcyData.com</h3>

<p><i>www.bankruptcydata.com</i&gt;. This is a well-organized for-profit site. Bankruptcydata.
com purports to have data on all U.S. bankruptcies for companies that reported assets
of $10 million or more. The site has an index of business bankruptcy filings by
year, a search by company name and a nice assortment of free offerings. You can obtain
creditor listings and other reports that have been filed on PACER. This service is
more expensive than PACER, but is more convenient and easier to use. The site also
produces a free e-mail newsletter that is quite informative.

</p><h3>Matthew Bender</h3>

<p><i>www.bender.com</i&gt;. Matthew Bender is now part of Lexis-Nexis. This is a good place
to get a downloadable copy of the Bankruptcy Reform Act of 2000 and the 1999
Amendments to Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure. One of the features of this
site is the Bankruptcy Case Update, which contains summaries of all recent decisions
affecting bankruptcy law. You can opt to receive the summaries via the web or you
can have a PDF document e-mailed to you.

</p><h3>Legal Research Associates</h3>

<p><i>www.lra4law.com/forms.htm</i&gt;. This is a for-profit site that has lots of free
downloads of commonly used forms and motions. The files are in Microsoft Word format.
This is a very good resource for creditors and small firms who can significantly reduce
the time spent in drafting motions or searching for forms.

</p><h3>Conclusion</h3>

<p>There are many options on the web. This listing is far short of an exhaustive
list, and because I use these sites on a regular basis, I may have missed one
that you have found helpful. If you know of a site that is valuable to you,
please contact the author.

</p><hr>
<h3>Footnotes</h3>

<p>^{<small><a name="1">1</a></small>} Steven Kerkstra is a certified public accountant and a highly experienced corporate financial officer. Mr. Kerkstra has also served as a faculty member at Loyola University of Chicago and Northern Illinois University and is a
graduate of Loyola University of Chicago. Mr. Kerkstra is currently a principal with Heartland Financial Corp., Investment Bankers and
Management Consultants and resides in Southern California. <a href="#1a">Return to article</a>

</p><p>^{<small><a name="2">2</a></small>} For a listing of bankruptcy court URLs, go to <a href="/chambers/courtdirs.html" target="window2">www.abiworld.org/chambers/courtdirs.html</a&gt;. <a href="#2a">Return to article</a>

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