Judge Kesha L. Tanabe

Chambers Address:

206 Warren E. Burger Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse Map
316 North Robert Street
St. Paul, MN 55101

Courtroom Location:

Courtroom 2C
316 North Robert Street
St. Paul, MN 55101

Hearing Information

To obtain a hearing date in a case or proceeding pending in the Saint Paul office:
Contact the Calendar Clerk:
651-848-1051
mnb_tanabe_hearings@mnb.uscourts.gov

Judge Tabs

Communication

Ex Parte

Parties in interest, attorneys and other professionals MUST NOT communicate in person, by phone or by e-mail with the bankruptcy judge concerning bankruptcy cases or proceedings, unless expressly authorized to do so. See Fed. R. Bankr. Proc. 9003(a). Parties or attorneys seeking relief from the court must obtain a hearing date and time from the calendar clerk for the judge assigned to the case, and file a Notice of Hearing (setting forth the date and time of the hearing provided by the calendar clerk) and a written Motion specifying the relief sought. Local Rules 9013-1 - 9013-3 and Local Form 9013-2 govern motion practice and are available on the Court's website, www.mnb.uscourts.gov, under Rules and Forms.

Seminars Disclosure

The U.S. Judicial Conference adopted a private seminars disclosure reporting policy (pdf) that requires educational program providers and judges to disclose certain information relevant to judges' attendance at privately-funded educational programs.

Any organization covered by the policy that issues an invitation on or after January 1, 2007 (for a program beginning after that date), to a federal judge to attend an educational program as a speaker, panelist, or attendee and offers to pay for or reimburse that judge, in excess of $305, must disclose financial and programmatic information.

Click to view a Seminars Disclosure report.

Rules for Self Calendaring

Attorneys may self-calendar lift stay motions and applications for compensation. Trustees, attorneys for Trustees and the United States Trustee may self-calendar all of their motions. Attorneys need not contact the calendar clerk to schedule these motions or applications, except for those being filed in a closed case.

To view available pre-set hearing dates, log in to CM/ECF first (if not already) and then click here (if not logged in to CM/ECF first, you will receive an Internal Server Error).

For more information, please contact the Calendar Clerk at 651-848-1051.

Order Preparations & Hearing Guidelines

Initial hearings are treated as preliminary hearings. Local Rule 9013-2(c)(2) states: "No evidence shall be presented at the initial hearing. The court will determine at the initial hearing whether an evidentiary hearing is required."
Moving documents must be filed within five days after the date and time for a hearing was obtained from the Judge’s calendar clerk, see Local Rule 9006-1(b). A motion is not complete until all such documents are filed. If documents are not filed within the appropriate timeline, the moving party should request a new hearing date.
Expedited hearing requests are governed by Local Rule 9006-1(e). "The judge will rule on the request for expedited hearing when the motion is heard."
A court appearance is required unless otherwise informed by the Court.
Submitting proposed orders. Ordinarily, proposed orders are filed with the motion. If you are submitting an order after the motion has been filed, please email it to Judge Tanabe’s calendar clerk, with all counterparties copied.
The date. Please put a place for the date on the left side below the text of the order. Do not put a month or year, simply put the word “Dated:”. Any line next to the word “Dated:” is also unnecessary.
Signature line. Put a line below the text on the right side of the page, then Judge Tanabe’s name and title underneath the line. Do not include anything other than Judge Tanabe’s name, "Kesha L. Tanabe," and the proper title directly beneath Judge Tanabe’s name: "United States Bankruptcy Judge." Avoid placing Judge Tanabe’s signature block on a standalone page.
Mandatory Language in Orders. Do not use words that would place parties in contempt of court if they do not follow the order. For instance, rather than saying "the Debtor shall do X," say "the Debtor agrees to do X." That is a finding that goes above the "It is ordered" section. Similarly, rather than saying "the Trustee is directed to distribute the funds," say "the Trustee is authorized to distribute the funds." In Chapter 13 relief stay orders, do not include the language, "The Chapter 13 Trustee shall make no further payments on the pre-petition arrears claim of Movant." If anything, say "The Chapter 13 Trustee is not required to make…"
Inappropriate Relief in Orders. Do not include in the actual order things the Court is not ordering, such as factual determinations or stipulations the parties have made. Those items really belong before the words "It is ordered."
Disposition. Make sure the relief granted is actually stated in the dispositive part of the order. Do not simply say "the motion is granted" or "the trustee’s objection is overruled." If real property is involved, include the legal description. Make sure the legal description is correct. Do not include as part of your relief anything which you did not request in the motion. Ensure all relief you did request in the motion is included in the relief granted.
Electronic format. All proposed orders must be submitted electronically. The document should be converted directly from Word or WordPerfect to PDF. Scanned orders will not be accepted. Court staff may contact you for a word processing version of your proposed order if necessary.
Avoid reinventing the wheel. Use our Official Local Forms, which are available on the Court’s website.
Proofread. Avoid typos. Clear writing signals clear thinking. Be sure correct legal descriptions are used when referring to real property and that the case caption reflects the debtors’ correct name and corresponding case number.

Courtroom Skills Development

OPPORTUNITIES FOR COURTROOM SKILLS DEVELOPMENT

The court recognizes the importance of providing opportunities for new lawyers to gain experience and training in courtroom skills. Accordingly, whenever lawyers or certified law students are familiar with the matter under consideration, but they are not experienced in arguing before a court, they are encouraged to participate in hearings. In such circumstances, a junior lawyer will be permitted to argue a motion with the assistance of a more senior lawyer, as needed.

United States Bankruptcy Court

District of Minnesota

Honorable Katherine A. Constantine, Chief Judge • Tricia Pepin, Clerk of Court

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Judge Kesha L. Tanabe

Hearing Information

Judge Tabs

Ex Parte

Seminars Disclosure