As with all other chapters, a Chapter 11 case commences when a bankruptcy petition is filed with the bankruptcy court. The voluntary petition will include standard information concerning the debtor and its assets and liabilities, and a request for relief.
A written disclosure statement and a plan of reorganization must be filed with the court. The disclosure statement is a document that must contain information concerning the assets, liabilities, and business affairs of the debtor sufficient to enable a creditor to make an informed judgment about the debtor's plan of reorganization. The contents of the plan must include a classification of claims and must specify how each class of claims will be treated under the plan. Creditors whose claims are impaired, that is, those whose contractual rights are to be modified or who will be paid less than the full value of their claims under the plan, vote on the plan by ballot. After the disclosure statement is approved and the ballots are collected and tallied, the bankruptcy court will conduct a confirmation hearing to determine whether to confirm the plan.