The laws that govern the rules of bankruptcy are found in Title 11 of the United States Code and are called the Bankruptcy Code.  Bankruptcy is authorized by Article I Section 8 of the United States Constitution, which states:  "The Congress shall have the power...[T]o establish...uniform laws on the subject of bankruptcies throughout the United States."  Despite the directive that laws be 'uniform', bankruptcy laws vary in substance and procedure across the various district courts of this country.

Special thanks to Cornell University Law School for providing an online copy of the Bankruptcy Code.