Bankruptcy Filings Rebound in Calendar Year 2007

NEWS RELEASE Bankruptcy Filings Rebound in Calendar Year 2007
Contact:	Karen Redmond, 202-502-2600 Print
April 15, 2008 -- Bankruptcy filings in the federal courts rose 38 percent in calendar year 2007, according to data released today by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts. The number of bankruptcies filed in the twelve-month period ending December 31, 2007, totaled 850,912, up from 617,660 bankruptcies filed in calendar year 2006. Filings rebounded from a 70 percent drop in calendar year 2006, which was the first full 12-month period after the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 (BAPCPA) took effect. Related Items Per Capita Filings 2007 (pdf) (excel) Table F-2 (filing by month) (pdf) (excel) Table F (12-month period) (pdf) (excel) Table F-2 (12-month period) (pdf) (excel) Table F-2 (3-month period) (pdf) (excel) An historic high in the number of bankruptcies filings was seen in calendar year 2005, when over 2 million bankruptcies were filed, mainly because, in October of 2005, many of the provisions of BAPCPA were enacted. Filings fell through 2006, but started their gradual climb back up in 2007. Business and Non-Business Filings The majority of bankruptcy filings are filings involving predominantly non-business debts. In CY 2007, they totaled 822,590, up 38 percent from the 597,965 non-business bankruptcy filings in CY 2006. Non-business filings totaled 2,039,214 in CY 2005. Filings involving predominantly business debts, totaling 28,322 in CY 2007 were up 44 percent from the 19,695 business bankruptcy filings in CY 2006. Business filings totaled 39,201 in CY 2005. First Quarter of FY 2008 The last three months of calendar year 2007 were the first quarter of the Judiciary's 2008 fiscal year. The number of bankruptcies filed during the first quarter of fiscal year 2008 (October 1-December 31, 2007) was 226,413 up 27 percent from the 177,599 filings in the first quarter of fiscal year 2007. Filings by Chapter In CY 2007, filings rose under Chapters 7, 11, 12 and 13 of the U.S. bankruptcy code. Chapter 7 filings totaled 519,364, up 44 percent from the 360,890 Chapter 7 filings reported in CY 2006. Chapter 11 filings rose 23 percent to 6,353 in CY 2007 from the 5,163 filings in CY 2006. Chapter 12 filings totaled 376, up 8 percent from the 348 Chapter 12 bankruptcy filings last calendar year. Chapter 13 filings were 324,771, up 29 percent from 251,179 Chapter 13 filings in Calendar Year 2006. For more on bankruptcy and its chapters, visit the Judiciary's web site or go to www.fjc.govfederalcourts.nsf. Local bankruptcy court rules and historic data on bankruptcy filings are also available. Additional bankruptcy statistics, including bankruptcies by county, can be found on the Judiciary's PACER system. Total Bankruptcy Filings by Bankruptcy Chapter Calendar Years, Period Ending December 31, 2003-2007   Chapter Year 7 11 12 13 2007 519,364 6,353 376 324,771 2006 360,890 5,163 348 251,179 2005 1,659,017 6,800 380 412,130 2004 1,137,958 10,132 108 449,129 2003 1,176,905 9,404 712 473,137 Business and Non-business Filings CY 2003-2006 Year Business Non-business Total 2007 28,322 822,590 850,912 2006 19,695 597,965 617,660 2005 39,201 2,039,214 2,078,415 2004 34,317 1,563,145 1,597,462 2003 35,037 1,625,208 1,660,245 Quarterly Filings* PERIOD FILINGS PERIOD FILINGS PERIOD FILINGS DEC. 31, 2007 226,413 DEC. 31, 2003 393,348 DEC. 31, 1999 318,634 SEPT. 30, 2007 218,909 SEPT. 30, 2003 412,989 SEPT. 30, 1999 323,550 JUN. 30, 2007 210,449 JUN. 30, 2003 440,257 JUN. 30, 1999 345,956 MAR. 31, 2007 193,641 MAR. 31, 2003 412,968 MAR. 31, 1999 330,784 DEC. 31, 2006 177,599 DEC. 31, 2002 395,129 DEC. 31, 1998 353,108 SEPT. 30, 2006 171,146 SEPT. 30, 2002 401,306 SEPT. 30, 1998 361,205 JUN. 30, 2006 155,833 JUN. 30, 2002 400,686 JUN. 30, 1998 373,460 MAR. 31, 2006 116,771 MAR. 31, 2002 379,012 MAR. 31, 1998 354,118 DEC. 31, 2005 667,431 DEC. 31, 2001 364,921 DEC. 31, 1997 347,685 SEPT. 30, 2005 542,002 SEPT. 30, 2001 359,518 SEPT. 30, 1997 353,515 JUN. 30, 2005 467,333 JUN. 30, 2001 400,394 JUN. 30, 1997 367,168 MAR.31, 2005 401,149 MAR. 31, 2001 366,841 MAR. 31, 1997 335,073 DEC. 31, 2004 371,668 DEC. 31, 2000 310,169 DEC. 31, 1996 311,131 SEPT. 30, 2004 396,438 SEPT. 30, 2000 308,718 SEPT. 30, 1996 303,309 JUN. 30, 2004 421,110 JUN. 30, 2000 321,729 JUN. 30, 1996 297,162 MAR. 31, 2004 407,572 MAR. 31, 2000 312,335 MAR. 31, 1996 266,149         DEC. 31, 1995 244,494 * Because of ongoing corrections to the bankruptcy database, the quarterly data may not total to the most recent annual figures.
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