Judge Michael E. Ridgway

Chambers Address:

7W Diana E. Murphy United States Courthouse Map
300 South Fourth Street
Minneapolis, MN 55415

Phone: 612-664-5260

Courtroom Location (Minneapolis):

Courtroom 7 West
300 South Fourth Street
Minneapolis, MN 55415

Hearing Information

To obtain a hearing date in a case or proceeding pending in the Minneapolis office:
Contact the Calendar Clerk
612-664-5263
mnb_ridgway_hearings@mnb.uscourts.gov

To obtain a hearing date in a case or proceeding pending in the Fergus Falls office:
Contact the Deputy-in-Charge (stationed in Duluth)
218-529-3601
mnb_fergus_falls_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. Chapter 7 Trustees, attorneys representing Chapter 7 Trustees and the United States Trustee may self-calendar all their motions. Attorneys need not contact the calendar clerk to schedule these motions or applications, except for those being filed in a closed case or if a continued hearing is being sought. Always refer to appropriate Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure and Local Bankruptcy Rules regarding the filing and service of motions and required notice periods.

To locate available hearing dates, follow the link Chamber Hearing Preset located on the Bankruptcy Events page in CM/ECF. Note you must be logged into CM/ECF to view the calendar report.

For more information, please call 612-664-5263 for Minneapolis matters or 218-529-3601 for Fergus Falls matters.

Order Preparations & Hearing Guidelines

Cases venued in Fergus Falls will be heard only in Fergus Falls, except when there are extremely extenuating circumstances, and then only by prior court approval. Note: the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Minnesota does not staff the courthouse in Fergus Falls. All filings are handled by the Duluth Office; please coordinate accordingly.
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).
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.
In a proposed order, avoid placing Judge Ridgway’s signature block on a standalone page. Do remember when drafting a proposed order that less is more. Please note that there is no “e” in Judge Ridgway’s name. His proper name is Michael E. Ridgway.
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 Ridgway’s calendar clerks: mnb_ridgway_hearings@mnb.uscourts.gov, for cases held in Minneapolis, or mnb_fergus_falls_hearings@mnb.uscourts.gov, for cases held in Fergus Falls.
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:”. The line used to put the date is also unnecessary.
Electronic format. All proposed order must be submitted in electronic form. 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.
Proof read. Avoid typos. Clear writing signals clear thinking. Be sure correct legal descriptions are used when referring to real property, that the case caption reflects the debtors’ correct name and corresponding case number.

United States Bankruptcy Court

District of Minnesota

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

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Judge Michael E. Ridgway

Hearing Information

Judge Tabs

Ex Parte

Seminars Disclosure