Andrew R. Vara Is Appointed Acting U.S. Trustee For Delaware, New Jersey And Pennsylvania

WASHINGTON – Andrew R. Vara has been appointed by Attorney General Eric Holder as Acting U.S. Trustee for Delaware, New Jersey and Pennsylvania (Region 3), effective on January 1, 2015, the Executive Office for U.S. Trustees announced today. Mr. Vara replaces Roberta A. DeAngelis, who is retiring after more than 15 years with the U.S. Trustee Program (USTP), including more than eight years as Region 3 U.S. Trustee or Acting U.S. Trustee.

Mr. Vara has served as the Assistant U.S. Trustee in the USTP's Cleveland office since 2008. He also previously has headed the USTP's offices in Wilmington, Del., and Manhattan, as Assistant U.S. Trustee and Acting Assistant U.S. Trustee, respectively. He frequently serves as a faculty member and lecturer at the USTP’s National Bankruptcy Training Institute located in the National Advocacy Center in Columbia, S.C. Mr. Vara serves as co-chair of education for the American Bankruptcy Institute's (ABI) Ethics and Professional Compensation Committee and recently served as a member of the ABI's Ethics Task Force. Before joining the USTP more than 20 years ago, he clerked for Hon. Laurence Howard, Chief Judge of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Western District of Michigan. Mr. Vara received his law degree with honors from Ohio State University Moritz College of Law in Columbus, Ohio, where he was awarded membership in the Order of the Coif, and his undergraduate degree magna cum laude from Duke University in Durham, N.C.

The USTP is the 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 USTP has 21 regions and 93 field office locations. Region 3 is headquartered in Philadelphia, with additional offices in Wilmington, Del.; Newark, New Jersey; and Harrisburg and Pittsburgh, Pa.