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Bankruptcies Set Another Record
in Third Quarter
Personal bankruptcy filings in the U.S. set new records during the third quarter of this year. Statistics just released from the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts indicate that more bankruptcies were filed during the 12-month period ending September 30, 2002 (1,508,578) than during any previous 12-month period. Filings were up 7.8 percent from 12-month period ending one year earlier. In addition, the third quarter total of 401,306 petitions filed was the largest quarterly filing volume ever recorded. About 70% of these personal bankruptcy filings were under Chapter 7 which allow individuals to keep certain exempt property (depending upon their state of residence), while any remaining assets are sold to repay creditors. The volume of Chapter 7 filings has been stable (within one or two percentage points of 70%) for nearly two decades.
There was additional bad news in the latest statistics. Third quarter filings were up 12% from the third quarter one year earlier, an unwelcome acceleration. The figure below reveals that a persistent upward trend in bankruptcies beginning in early 2001 had halted (temporarily) in the second quarter of this year, giving some reassurance to creditors that portfolio performance was about to stabilize. The third quarter surge was unexpected. Unlike the spike in filings during the spring of 2001, which was largely attributable to the prospects of passage of a new bankruptcy reform law, this recent escalation is more likely rooted in deteriorating household finances. Out of 91 bankruptcy judicial districts in the U.S. and Puerto Rico, only 76 districts experienced increased filing volume. (See table below for more details).
The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts is concerned about the rising caseload on bankruptcy judges. Caseload has increased 59% in the past decade, rising from 2,998 per judgeship in 1992 to 4,777 in 2002. No new bankruptcy judgeships have been added to the federal bench since 1992. Bankruptcy reform has been pending in Congress since 1997, but the hope for passage expired in early November of this year.
Printer-Friendly Chart
| Personal Bankruptcies in 2002 by State and Judicial District for the 12-Month Period Ending September 30, 2002 |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Filings as of 9/30/2002 |
% Change in Total 9/30/2001-9/30/2002 |
% Chapter 7 as of 9/30/2002 | |
| Total | 1,508,578 | 7.8% | 70.4% |
| Alabama | 40,932 | 10.4% | 46.7% |
| Middle | 9,419 | 18.6% | 51.0% |
| North | 24,320 | 6.8% | 46.2% |
| South | 7,193 | 12.8% | 42.9% |
| Alaska | 1,320 | -2.6% | 91.7% |
| Arizona | 28,005 | 20.5% | 80.0% |
| Arkansas | 22,454 | 11.3% | 57.9% |
| East | 14,415 | 12.2% | 52.5% |
| West | 8,039 | 9.5% | 67.6% |
| California | 144,644 | -0.5% | 81.6% |
| Central | 82,391 | -1.5% | 82.9% |
| East | 30,190 | -1.1% | 85.3% |
| North | 19,442 | 6.7% | 71.0% |
| South | 12,621 | -3.0% | 80.6% |
| Colorado | 19,743 | 11.7% | 87.4% |
| Connecticut | 11,277 | -0.7% | 83.7% |
| District Of Columbia | 2,463 | -1.0% | 70.8% |
| Delaware | 2,985 | 5.9% | 63.8% |
| Florida | 88,455 | 8.1% | 72.4% |
| Middle | 50,745 | 10.2% | 72.4% |
| North | 6,320 | 7.0% | 79.2% |
| South | 31,390 | 5.2% | 70.9% |
| Georgia | 73,862 | 11.4% | 41.1% |
| Middle | 17,672 | 6.4% | 42.7% |
| North | 41,031 | 15.1% | 45.5% |
| South | 15,159 | 7.7% | 27.2% |
| Hawaii | 4,627 | -5.6% | 89.5% |
| Idaho | 8,399 | 7.1% | 86.5% |
| Illinois | 78,887 | 13.9% | 73.5% |
| Central | 15,160 | 11.7% | 85.4% |
| North | 55,154 | 15.6% | 70.5% |
| South | 8,573 | 7.3% | 71.5% |
| Indiana | 51,980 | 16.5% | 80.7% |
| North | 20,376 | 17.5% | 83.9% |
| South | 31,604 | 15.9% | 78.6% |
| Iowa | 11,139 | 8.5% | 94.7% |
| North | 4,253 | 5.1% | 96.4% |
| South | 6,886 | 10.6% | 93.7% |
| Kansas | 14,276 | 8.8% | 81.5% |
| Kentucky | 26,467 | 6.9% | 83.3% |
| East | 11,659 | 8.2% | 87.3% |
| West | 14,808 | 5.8% | 80.0% |
| Louisiana | 26,125 | 1.4% | 61.0% |
| East | 9,402 | -4.7% | 67.7% |
| Middle | 3,610 | 13.3% | 71.4% |
| West | 13,113 | 3.3% | 53.4% |
| Maine | 4,366 | 3.0% | 91.4% |
| Maryland | 34,327 | 1.5% | 66.9% |
| Massachusetts | 16,636 | -2.5% | 84.9% |
| Michigan | 51,762 | 19.3% | 70.4% |
| East | 37,075 | 22.2% | 68.3% |
| West | 14,687 | 12.5% | 75.7% |
| Minnesota | 17,830 | 11.7% | 83.2% |
| Mississippi | 21,804 | 2.9% | 64.8% |
| North | 7,958 | 5.8% | 66.7% |
| South | 13,846 | 1.3% | 63.8% |
| Missouri | 32,366 | 11.0% | 73.3% |
| East | 17,322 | 7.5% | 66.6% |
| West | 15,044 | 15.4% | 81.2% |
| Montana | 3,980 | 8.2% | 87.9% |
| Nebraska | 7,311 | 8.4% | 79.2% |
| Nevada | 18,648 | 10.9% | 74.3% |
| New Hampshire | 3,670 | 3.1% | 90.5% |
| New Jersey | 40,006 | -0.8% | 63.1% |
| New Mexico | 8,310 | 6.0% | 90.7% |
| New York | 67,415 | 3.6% | 79.7% |
| East | 24,783 | -0.5% | 77.3% |
| North | 15,584 | 4.4% | 80.2% |
| South | 14,279 | 8.3% | 86.9% |
| West | 12,769 | 5.8% | 75.7% |
| North Carolina | 35,318 | 11.8% | 47.1% |
| East | 14,588 | 13.0% | 49.2% |
| Middle | 11,399 | 10.7% | 41.0% |
| West | 9,331 | 11.4% | 51.3% |
| North Dakota | 1,920 | -9.4% | 96.5% |
| Ohio | 74,530 | 13.0% | 79.8% |
| North | 39,306 | 16.4% | 82.2% |
| South | 35,224 | 9.4% | 77.2% |
| Oklahoma | 23,180 | 6.2% | 88.2% |
| East | 4,421 | 9.2% | 92.5% |
| North | 6,052 | 16.7% | 91.4% |
| West | 12,707 | 1.0% | 85.1% |
| Oregon | 22,519 | 8.8% | 88.6% |
| Pennsylvania | 52,118 | 6.1% | 69.0% |
| East | 24,086 | 3.8% | 55.5% |
| Middle | 11,875 | 6.0% | 76.7% |
| West | 16,157 | 9.8% | 83.3% |
| Rhode Island | 4,762 | 1.0% | 91.8% |
| South Carolina | 15,348 | 14.8% | 43.5% |
| South Dakota | 2,551 | 6.6% | 95.5% |
| Tennessee | 61,985 | 9.3% | 46.9% |
| East | 19,146 | 5.6% | 61.2% |
| Middle | 15,087 | 11.3% | 62.3% |
| West | 27,752 | 11.0% | 28.6% |
| Texas | 76,746 | 10.0% | 52.0% |
| East | 11,885 | 16.3% | 53.7% |
| North | 27,053 | 12.2% | 47.8% |
| South | 19,997 | 8.3% | 53.7% |
| West | 17,811 | 5.0% | 55.3% |
| Utah | 20,854 | 15.5% | 65.1% |
| Vermont | 1,673 | 0.4% | 88.8% |
| Virginia | 41,693 | 5.5% | 75.0% |
| East | 29,750 | 6.8% | 70.4% |
| West | 11,943 | 2.2% | 86.4% |
| Washington | 37,704 | 7.4% | 80.0% |
| East | 9,764 | 2.2% | 76.1% |
| West | 27,940 | 9.3% | 81.4% |
| West Virginia | 9,695 | -1.1% | 94.5% |
| North | 4,092 | 5.0% | 93.7% |
| South | 5,603 | -5.2% | 95.1% |
| Wisconsin | 23,384 | 14.3% | 83.7% |
| East | 15,850 | 14.6% | 81.3% |
| West | 7,534 | 13.7% | 88.8% |
| Wyoming | 2,193 | -10.1% | 94.1% |
| Guam | 374 | 87.0% | 88.5% |
| NMI | 22 | 46.7% | 86.4% |
| Puerto Rico | 13,487 | -4.7% | 30.1% |
| Virgin Islands | 51 | -8.9% | 51.0% |
| Circuit | |||
| 1st | 42,921 | -1.9% | 69.6% |
| 2nd | 80,365 | 2.9% | 80.4% |
| 3rd | 95,160 | 3.1% | 66.3% |
| 4th | 136,381 | 6.5% | 63.6% |
| 5th | 124,675 | 6.8% | 56.1% |
| 6th | 214,744 | 12.5% | 68.5% |
| 7th | 154,251 | 14.8% | 77.5% |
| 8th | 95,571 | 10.1% | 75.6% |
| 9th | 270,242 | 4.2% | 81.8% |
| 10th | 88,556 | 9.4% | 81.9% |
| 11th | 203,249 | 9.7% | 55.8% |
| States and territories in each circuit: | |||
| 1st: ME, MA, NH, RI, PR | |||
| 2nd: CT, NY, VT | |||
| 3rd: DE, NJ, PA, VI | |||
| 4th: MD, NC, SC, VA, WV | |||
| 5th: LA, MS, TX | |||
| 6th: KY, MI, OH, TN | |||
| 7th: IL, IN, WI | |||
| 8th: AR, IA, MN, MO, NE, ND, SD | |||
| 9th: AK, AZ, CA, HI, ID, MT, NV, OR, WA, GUAM, NMI | |||
| 10th: CO, KS, NM, OK, UT, WY | |||
| 11th: AL, FL, GA | |||