GENERAL INFO.	There are two different areas or “tables” in CM/ECF where searching must be done. The rules for searching in the two areas vary slightly because of the way data is entered into the table(s). If you are entering a Proof of Claim, you will be searching in the “Creditor Records” table. There is a separate “Creditor Records” table for each case filed. More detailed information about the “Creditor Records” tables is located in the instructions for “Proofs of Claim for Attorneys”. If you are opening a bankruptcy case or adversary proceeding or filing any other kind of pleading, you will be searching in the “Party Records” table. There is only one “Party Records” table and it contains the party information for every case filed since 1991 (it also contains some information from some earlier cases). The instructions below explain searching for and selecting or adding your client when filing a pleading which is NOT A PROOF OF CLAIM.
STEP 1	At some point during the filing of your pleading, you will come to the following “Select the Party:” screen. If your client is already in the list of parties, you simply click on their name to highlight and select them as shown in the example below. Then, click the button and finish filing the pleading because no searching or adding will be necessary. NOTE: If this is the first pleading you have filed on behalf of your client in a debtor’s bankruptcy case or in an adversary proceeding, they will not be in the list of party filers for the case unless someone else has previously filed a pleading on behalf of your client in the case. Click the hyperlink If your client is not already in the list of parties in the case. NOTE: Although the hyperlink is labeled “Add/Create New Party”, what you are really doing is searching for a party that likely already exists and only adding them if they do not already exist in the party records table.
EXAMPLE OF PARTY SEARCH SCREEN	The following screen will now appear because a search of the current party records table must be performed first before a party is truly added.
PARTY RECORDS SEARCH TIPS	One can search for debtor(s) by social security number or tax identification number and/or last name or business name. One can search for other parties by last name or business name. The “Last/Business name” field is large enough to hold up to 200 characters. For business names, the first part of the name will probably be sufficient. Format Social Security number and Tax ID number with hyphens. Searching is case sensitive. So a debtor with the last name of “Smith” must be searched for as “Smith”, not as “smith”. Partial names can be entered, but at least two characters must be entered. For example, “Radio” would find “Radio Shack” and “Radiology Associates”, but unlike the creditor records area, it would not find “Northwest Radiology”. This is one of the main areas where searching for party records differs from searching for creditor records. A question mark (?) represents a wild card for one character only. An asterisk (*) is a wild card for any number (or none) of characters. Wild cards (*) (?) are not needed at the end of a search string. Ex: Harve would find Harvey, Harver, Harvester, etc. Wild cards may be used before or within search strings (*son) (Gr?y). Ex: Johns*n would find Johnston, Johnson, and Johnsen, but would not find Johns or Johannsen. While *Johns* would also find “Paul Johnson Company”. Ex: Gr?y would find Gray and Grey, but Gr*y would find Gray, Grey, and Gregory, etc. An asterisk (*) should not be used by itself. Nor should you search without entering search criteria (even in a small case). This is the other main area where searching for parties/clients in the party records table differs from searching for creditor records. NOTE: Since searching can be tricky, try several alternative searches before you decide that the party you represent is not in the database and add it.
STEP 2	Enter your search criteria following the search tips listed previously. In this example, the attorney is searching for their client, “Community Bank”. You should not enter too much search criteria so that you will find all variations of “Community”. For example, if you entered “Community Bank” as the search criteria, you would not find your client if they had previously been added to the system as “Community Bk” or as “Comm. Bank”. NOTE: A good rule of thumb is to stop entering search criteria at the first point where you believe someone else might have abbreviated the party’s name.
STEP 3	Click the button after you have entered at least two characters of search criteria.
SEARCH RESULTS IF PARTY IS NOT IN PARTY RECORDS TABLE	If this were truly the first time anyone has filed a pleading on your client’s behalf in a bankruptcy case in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky, the following message would display. You would then click the button to move on to the party information screen to add the party. NOTE: It is more likely that you entered too much search criteria if you don’t find your client than it is that they really aren’t in the system. NOTE: When you search, if you represent a party other than the debtor, you should be able to find your party’s name and select it (if they have ever had a pleading filed on their behalf in any bankruptcy case in the Eastern District of Kentucky since August 1991). It should be a RARE SITUATION that you will actually have to add your client as a party to the party records table. NOTE: If you represent a debtor(s), when you search, you will NOT find your party unless they have previously filed a bankruptcy case in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky since 1991.
SEARCH RESULTS WHEN SEVERAL PARTIES MATCH THE SEARCH CRITERIA	Based upon the search criteria “Comm”, results similar to those below will now display.
STEP 4	Click on the appropriate party to select them as your client, as shown below.
STEP 5	A window similar to the following window will open which may contain the correct name for your client, but incorrect or missing address information. NOTE: As long as the name you selected was your client’s correct name, the address information is irrelevant because you will have an opportunity on the next screen to correct the address information. Simply click the button to close the window and move to the next screen.
STEP 6	The “Party Information” screen then displays. NOTE: If you are actually adding a party, it may be necessary to finish entering the name of the party since your search criteria will have been just part of the client’s name, not the entire name. At this point you can fill in missing address information or completely change the address information that is displayed. NOTE: The changes you make to the address information will only be effective for the current case. This will not change the party’s address for any other matters in which they may be involved.
STEP 7	Even if the address information is completely correct, you will need to change the “Role” type from “blank” to the correct role of your client. If you are not opening a bankruptcy case or an adversary proceeding, the most common “Role” type to select will be “Creditor”. Select the role type by using the arrow next to the “Role” field and use your mouse to click on the appropriate role type.
STEP 8	After selecting the appropriate role type, click the button to move to the next screen.
STEP 9	The “Select the Party” screen will display once again. The party that you have selected or just added will already be highlighted. Click the button to move to the next screen.
STEP 10	NOTE: Even though you just searched for and selected or added your client, CM/ECF will not automatically create an association between you and the party. If you have never filed a pleading for this party in this case, or if different counsel previously represented your client in this case, you will next have to create an association between yourself and your client. In the example below, “Grace Dupree” is filing a pleading on behalf of “Community Bank”. This is the first time “Grace Dupree” has filed anything in this case on behalf of “Community Bank”, so it will be necessary to tell the CM/ECF system that this is her client. Create the association by clicking in the small square box with your mouse to insert a check mark into the box as shown above.
STEP 11	Click the button to move past the attorney/party association screen to the rest of the screens required to file your pleading.
SELECTING YOUR CLIENT WHEN FILING A PROOF OF CLAIM	See the separate instructions for “Proofs of Claim for Attorneys”.

	FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
QUESTION:	What is in the CM/ECF “Party Records” table?
ANSWER:	The names and addresses of all panel and standing trustees, the US Trustee’s office, the name of every creditor that has had a pleading (other than a Proof of Claim) filed on their behalf in a bankruptcy case opened since August of 1991 in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky.
QUESTION:	What is the “Party Records” Table used for?
ANSWER:	The “Party Records” table is used to select the client you represent when you are filing a pleading (other than a Proof of Claim) on their behalf in a bankruptcy case.
QUESTION:	How should names and addresses be formatted if I have to add my client?
ANSWER:	Follow the instructions on our website at www.kyeb.uscourts.gov for “Party Records Data Entry Rules”.
QUESTION:	How is the “Party Records” table different than the “Creditor Records” table?
ANSWER:	The “Creditor Records” table for a case contains the names and addresses of all the creditors listed in the schedules of that debtor(s) bankruptcy petition. The information is added to the creditor record table automatically during “Case Upload” or by manually “Uploading the Creditor Matrix” during case opening. So, for example, if “Sears” was listed on the matrix of 5,000 active bankruptcy cases, “Sears” will be in the creditor records tables 5,000 times (even if the name and address is identical for each bankruptcy). This is because the court has a legal obligation to notify every creditor (that the debtor lists in their schedules) of the filing of the bankruptcy using the creditor’s name and address information exactly as it was provided to the court by the debtor(s). There is only one “Party Records” table for the entire system. There is not a “Party Records” table for each bankruptcy case. Using the same example used above, if “Sears” had (through counsel) filed a “Motion for Relief from Stay” in 5,000 active bankruptcy cases, “Sears” should only be in the “Party Records” table once. The reason the party (Sears) should only be in the table once is because each time an attorney files a pleading (other than a Proof of Claim) for a party (Sears), they will first be searching for the party (Sears) in the “Party Records” table and then, selecting them. This is true even if the address, as shown, is incorrect or missing because address information can be changed or added on a case-by-case basis as necessary. So, unless your client has never had a pleading filed on their behalf in a bankruptcy case in the Eastern District of Kentucky since 1991, you will be searching for them and selecting them and NOT adding them as a party. NOTE: The reason that names often appear in a list multiple times when you search is because users fail to follow the “Party Records Data Entry Rules” established by the court. So, using the same example above, one user might enter “Sears” as “Sears”, another might add them as “Sears & Roebuck, Inc”, another might add them as “Sears & Roebuck Company”, and someone else might enter them as “Sears & Roebuck Co.”. Also, sometimes a user will add the exact same “Sears” because the address was incorrect, instead of choosing “Sears” and changing the address.