4-2.1 28 U.S.C. § 586(b)
The United States Trustee is authorized by law to appoint one or more individuals to serve as a standing trustee in chapter 12 or 13 cases. 28 U.S.C. § 586(b).
4-2.2 QUALIFICATION FOR APPOINTMENT AS STANDING TRUSTEE
To be eligible for appointment as a standing trustee, an individual must have the qualifications for membership as set forth at 11 U.S.C. § 321 and at 28 C.F.R. §§ 58.3 and 58.4. An individual need not be an attorney to be eligible for appointment as a standing trustee. A corporation may be appointed as a standing trustee only with the approval of the Director. 28 C.F.R. § 58.4. A trustee applicant must qualify to be bonded.
4-2.3 RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION
During the selection process, the United States Trustee should screen applicants for potential conflicts of interest.
Whenever a standing trustee is to be appointed, the United States Trustee is to conduct an open solicitation of persons interested in serving as a standing trustee. The United States Trustee must comply with applicable diversity policies and initiatives in the recruitment process.
A notice and solicitation package should be forwarded to the Assistant Director for Review and Oversight. The solicitation package should include the standard vacancy notice; a listing of all recruitment sources in the community to be used, including free advertising; and a description of all steps the United States Trustee plans to take to ensure that the selection process is open. The Office of Review and Oversight maintains and distributes the standard vacancy notice. All advertisements must conform to this notice.
After review of the recruitment package to ensure that diversity initiatives have been satisfied and that the standard vacancy notice has been used, the Office of Review and Oversight will forward the notice to the Administrative Services Division of the Executive Office for placement of the advertisement in the publications identified and, as appropriate, will also send a copy of the vacancy announcement to various national organizations. Absent extraordinary circumstances, the notice shall remain open for a minimum of two weeks from the last date of publication. Gathering information about submission deadlines and the frequency of a publication will help ensure that this standard is met.
When the United States Trustee has narrowed the selection down to two or three candidates, the names should be forwarded to the Office of Review and Oversight, along with the United States Trustee's recommendation, for approval by the Director. No candidate should be advised that he/she will be appointed prior to the Director's approval.
4-2.4 BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION
The appointment of a standing trustee is subject to completion of a satisfactory background investigation. A proposed appointee must submit to the United States Trustee an employment application, SF-86 (Questionnaire for Sensitive Positions), DOJ-488 (Tax Check Waiver), FD-258 (Fingerprint Cards), I-9 (Employment Eligibility Verification), and a Form 555(a) (Disclosure and Authorization Pertaining to Consumer Reports Pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1681). After the United States Trustee has reviewed the documents for completeness and accuracy, they are to be transmitted to the Office of Review and Oversight for final review and processing. Several of these forms are time sensitive and require immediate review. Upon acceptance of the completed forms, an applicant can be appointed, conditioned on the completion and closing of a satisfactory background investigation.
The Office of Review and Oversight will notify the United States Trustee of any background information that requires additional information or clarification by a trustee. The resolution of questionable information will require an affidavit and/or other documentation from the appointed trustee.
The Office of Review and Oversight will notify the United States Trustee when a trustee's background investigation has been completed. The United States Trustee should then notify the appointed standing trustee.