The purpose of the conference, held in Washington, D.C. January 30-February 1, 2003, was to identify the factors that influence the selection of venue for Chapter 11 cases of large companies irrespective of the statute; evaluate the effect of venue choice on parties-in-interest and the courts; and determine whether legislation or judicial action related to venue was necessary and appropriate.

Recognizing that the debtor's choice of venue may depend greatly on the procedures courts have in place for handling various aspects of large Chapter 11 cases, an additional goal of the conference was to critically examine the effectiveness of such procedures, the variations in them among districts, and, ultimately, whether standard procedures for handling large Chapter 11 cases are needed.

This report summarizes the conference discussions, focusing first on the factors that influence the choice of venue and, second, on the proposals for further action recommended by the Bankruptcy Committee's Subcommittee on Venue-Related Matters. To a large extent, these recommendations are oriented toward expanding the expertise in handling large Chapter 11 matters throughout the bankruptcy bench and helping to establish more effective and standard procedures for large Chapter 11 cases throughout the nation.