Washington, D.C.

Office of Research and Planning

PRESS RELEASE

For Immediate Release
April 22, 2002

HABBO G. FOKKENA APPOINTED U.S. TRUSTEE FOR
IOWA, MINNESOTA, NORTH DAKOTA, SOUTH DAKOTA

WASHINGTON, D.C.-Habbo G. Fokkena has been appointed United States Trustee for Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota, it was announced today by Lawrence Friedman, Director of the Executive Office for United States Trustees. Fokkena will take office May 6, 2002.

"I am very pleased that Attorney General Ashcroft has selected Habbo Fokkena to lead the United States Trustee team in Region 12," Friedman stated in announcing the appointment. "Habbo will bring new leadership and a wealth of practical experience to the many demands of this position."

"I am honored by the opportunity to serve as United States Trustee," Fokkena stated. "I have great respect for the very dedicated professionals in the United States Trustee offices throughout Region 12. I look forward to working with them, under Director Friedman, to achieve the Attorney General's goal of enhancing the integrity and efficiency of the bankruptcy system."

Prior to his appointment, Fokkena was a sole practitioner in Clarksville, Iowa, specializing in financial and bankruptcy litigation and labor arbitration. He administered nearly 6,000 Chapter 7 bankruptcy cases as a panel trustee for the Northern District of Iowa from 1987 to 2002, and has held positions as City Attorney for Clarksville, Bristow, and Plainfield, Iowa, and County Attorney for Butler County, Iowa. He served in the United States Army from 1967 to 1969.

Fokkena is a member of the American Bankruptcy Institute and the National Association of Bankruptcy Trustees, and has been appointed numerous times as a labor panel member for the American Arbitration Association, the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, the Iowa Public Employment Relations Board, and other arbitration panels. He is also a frequent speaker on bankruptcy and arbitration issues.

Fokkena received his law degree in 1975 from the University of Iowa College of Law in Iowa City, and his undergraduate degree in 1972 from the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls, Iowa.

The United States Trustee Program is a component of the Justice Department that protects the integrity of the bankruptcy system by overseeing case administration and litigating to enforce the bankruptcy laws.

The Program has 21 regions and 95 field offices. Region 12, which consists of Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota, is headquartered in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, with additional offices in Des Moines, Minneapolis, and Sioux Falls, S.D.

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