In legal usage, a converted case most often means a bankruptcy case that has been switched from one chapter of the Bankruptcy Code to another, such as a Chapter 13 repayment plan being moved to a Chapter 7 liquidation. The phrase also appears in civil litigation, where a judge transforms one type of motion into another, most often turning a motion to dismiss into a motion for summary judgment. In both situations the case keeps going under its existing docket, but the rules, standards, and sometimes the stakes change.
Bankruptcy Conversion
Bankruptcy is where the term shows up most. A debtor who filed under one chapter may later need to move to another. A Chapter 13 debtor who loses a job and can no longer fund a repayment plan might switch to Chapter 7. Creditors or the U.S. Trustee may push for the opposite result, asking the court to convert a case when the debtor is not meeting obligations.
A conversion is not a new filing. The case keeps its original number and petition date, and the court issues an order for relief under the new chapter.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 348 – Effect of Conversion That preserved filing date still controls what property is part of the estate, which claims are covered, and how various deadlines run.
Voluntary and Involuntary Conversion
Bankruptcy law treats debtor-initiated conversions very differently from those forced by other parties.
When the Debtor Converts
A Chapter 7 debtor has a one-time right to convert to Chapter 11, 12, or 13, provided the case did not arrive in Chapter 7 through a prior conversion from one of those chapters. Any contract clause that tries to waive this right is unenforceable.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 706 – Conversion A Chapter 13 debtor can convert to Chapter 7 at any time, and that right also cannot be waived.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 US Code 1307 – Conversion or Dismissal A Chapter 11 debtor can convert to Chapter 7 as long as the debtor is still in possession of the estate and the case was not originally filed as an involuntary petition.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 US Code 1112 – Conversion or Dismissal
Eligibility still controls. A debtor whose obligations exceed the Chapter 13 debt limits cannot convert into Chapter 13, no matter how much they want to.
When Someone Else Forces the Conversion
Creditors, the U.S. Trustee, and other parties in interest can ask the court to convert a case over the debtor’s objection, but they have to show cause. In a Chapter 13 case, grounds include unreasonable delay that prejudices creditors, failure to make plan payments, failure to file a plan on time, and default on a confirmed plan’s terms.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 US Code 1307 – Conversion or Dismissal Failing to file required tax returns is another trigger. One protection cuts the other way: a farmer in Chapter 13 cannot be involuntarily converted to any other chapter.
In a Chapter 11 case, the grounds are serious: substantial and continuing loss to the estate, gross mismanagement, failure to maintain insurance, unauthorized use of cash collateral, or repeated failure to comply with court orders. The court must hold a hearing within 30 days of the motion and decide within 15 days after that.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 US Code 1112 – Conversion or Dismissal
What Actually Changes After a Bankruptcy Conversion
The docket number stays the same, but the legal landscape underneath it shifts.
The estate itself can grow or shrink. When a Chapter 13 case converts to Chapter 7, the estate consists of whatever property the debtor had on the original filing date that the debtor still possesses or controls on the conversion date. If the court finds the debtor converted in bad faith, the estate instead includes all property as of the conversion date, which is usually a larger pool.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 348 – Effect of Conversion
Claims that arose between the original filing and the conversion date are generally treated as if they existed just before the petition was filed. That pulls them into the bankruptcy instead of leaving them as post-petition debts the debtor would have to pay in full.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 348 – Effect of Conversion
Filing fees change too. Converting from Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 up to Chapter 11 requires paying the difference. A Chapter 11 filing fee is $1,167, compared to $245 for Chapter 7 and $235 for Chapter 13, and the debtor pays the gap. Converting down from Chapter 13 to Chapter 7 does not require an additional fee.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1930 – Bankruptcy Fees
The paperwork also has to catch up. A Chapter 13 debtor used to tracking income and expenses for a plan now has to catalog assets and exemptions for liquidation. Schedules may need to be amended or newly filed to match what the new chapter requires.
Motion Conversion in Civil Litigation
Outside bankruptcy, the word “converted” shows up most often under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(d). When a party files a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim under Rule 12(b)(6), or a motion for judgment on the pleadings under Rule 12(c), the court normally looks only at the pleadings. But if either side submits material from outside the pleadings and the court does not exclude it, the motion must be treated as a motion for summary judgment under Rule 56.6Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 12 – Defenses and Objections
That procedural shift matters. Both sides must get reasonable notice and a fair chance to submit evidence, including affidavits and exhibits. The question the court is asking also changes. A dismissal motion asks whether the complaint states a plausible claim. Summary judgment asks whether there is a genuine dispute of material fact. Lawyers who prepared for a quick dismissal argument suddenly have to put forward evidence as if heading toward trial.
Rule 56(f) adds another layer of protection. If the court is thinking about granting summary judgment on a ground nobody raised, or in favor of the party that did not file the motion, it has to give the other side notice and time to respond first.7Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 56 – Summary Judgment Skipping that notice is a common appellate issue. A conversion done without a reasonable opportunity for the opposing party to present pertinent material can be reversed.
Attachments trip lawyers up more than you would expect. Casually attaching an exhibit to a motion to dismiss can be enough to trigger conversion and pull both sides into a far more involved process than anyone planned for.
Two Things “Conversion” Does Not Mean
Two uses of the word “conversion” cause regular confusion and are worth separating out.
The tort of conversion is unrelated to case conversion. It is a civil claim that arises when someone takes or exercises unauthorized control over another person’s personal property with the intent to deprive them of it. It applies to movable, tangible property only, not real estate. The required intent is simply the objective to possess the property or claim ownership; a person who picks up a necklace off the ground and sells it can be liable for conversion even if they thought it was abandoned. The usual remedy is money damages equal to the fair market value of the property at the time it was taken, though courts may order return of the item if it still exists. If “conversion” appears on a civil complaint, this tort is almost certainly what is meant.
A civil case also does not literally convert into a criminal case. Civil and criminal proceedings are brought by different parties under different authority, and one does not transform into the other. What happens instead is that the two can run in parallel. Evidence from a civil investigation may lead a government agency to refer a matter to prosecutors, who then open a separate criminal case. The Department of Justice has formal policies encouraging coordination between its civil and criminal attorneys when the same conduct gives rise to both kinds of liability.8U.S. Department of Justice. Justice Manual 1-12.000 – Coordination of Parallel Criminal, Civil, Regulatory, and Administrative Proceedings Parallel proceedings can reshape a civil case, especially when a defendant invokes the Fifth Amendment in the criminal matter, but that is coordination, not conversion.