U.S. Department of Justice
Executive Office for United States Trustees
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USTP Press Release
For Immediate Release
January 4, 2000
JERRY
PATCHAN, DIRECTOR OF
EXECUTIVE OFFICE FOR U.S. TRUSTEES,
ANNOUNCES FEB. 11 RETIREMENT
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Joseph "Jerry"
Patchan announced today that he will retire from his position
as Director of the Executive Office for United States Trustees
effective Feb. 11, 2000. The EOUST is the Washington,
D.C., office of the United States Trustee Program, an arm
of the Justice Department that supervises the administration
of bankruptcy cases nationwide.
"Bankruptcy offers a 'fresh
start,'" Patchan observed. "I've spent many years in bankruptcy
law, and now it's time for my fresh start. I plan to go home
to Ohio and do nothing for as long as I can stand doing nothing."
"Over the past year the Program
has, among many other accomplishments, laid the groundwork
to take on potential new responsibilities set forth in the
pending bankruptcy reform legislation, such as means-testing
for debtors' Chapter 7 eligibility and approving pre-bankruptcy
credit counseling services," Patchan said. "I am satisfied
that if the legislation is enacted we will be well-positioned
to handle those duties."
The Program's accomplishments
during Patchan's five-year tenure include:
- Working with the bankruptcy courts to speed bankruptcy
case processing, which in turn generally increases dividends
paid to creditors.
- Coordinating with law enforcement agencies to create
the National Bankruptcy Fraud Task Force in 1999. The
Task Force includes representatives from the United States
Attorneys' offices, the United States Trustee Program,
the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue
Service's Criminal Investigation Division, the Department
of Housing and Urban Development, and the Social Security
Administration.
- Establishing the National Bankruptcy Training Institute
in 1999 to provide professional training for Program employees.
The Institute is part of the National Advocacy Center
in Columbia, S.C., which houses the national training
programs of the United States Attorneys and the nation's
District Attorneys.
- Improving relationships with the private bankruptcy
trustees who are appointed and supervised by the Program,
and with other bankruptcy professionals.
- Developing and distributing reliable data on bankruptcy
administration. The Program has expanded its Internet
web site considerably to make bankruptcy-related information
easily accessible to the public.
Patchan
was appointed Director of the Executive Office in December
1994, after serving for more than three years in the legal
department of the Resolution Trust Corp. in Washington, D.C.,
where he rose to Deputy General Counsel. From 1975 to 1991
Patchan was a partner at the law firm of Baker & Hostetler
in Cleveland. He served as a Bankruptcy Judge for the Northern
District of Ohio from 1969 to 1975 and was in private practice
prior to that appointment. From 1978 to 1991, he was a member
of the Advisory Committee on Bankruptcy Rules of the Judicial
Conference of the United States.
Contact: Jane Limprecht, Public
Information Officer
Executive
Office for United States Trustees
(202) 305-7411
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