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Bankruptcy Filings Set New Annual Record
Personal bankruptcy filings in the U.S. set a new record for the 12-months ending June 30, 2002. Statistics just released from the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts indicated that personal filings totaled 1,466,105 cases, up 8.6 percent from a year earlier, and the highest total ever reached in any 12-month period. Of these filings, 1,053,320 were Chapter 7 filings, which allow individuals to keep certain exempt property with any remaining assets sold to repay creditors.
The good news in the latest bankruptcy statistics is that filings during the second quarter of this year (ending June 30, 2002) were up less than one percent from the same quarter one year earlier. Out of 91 bankruptcy judicial districts in the U.S and Puerto Rico, 15 districts experienced declines. In California, the state with the largest number of filings and highest growth rates over much of the past decade, three of the four judicial districts experienced declines in filing volume.
Thus, it appears that the surge in filings is largely over. That could change if the pending bankruptcy reform bill in Congress is passed and signed by the President this fall. Passage will likely trigger a surge of "beat-the-deadline" filings as debtors scramble to file under the older, more lenient rules. Of course, next year's filings would likely be smaller, both because of the tighter restrictions in the new law and also because of the accelerated resolution of some troubled debtors' estates.
Printer-Friendly Chart
| Personal Bankruptcies in 2002 by State and Judicial District for the 12-Month Period Ending June 30, 2002 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Filings as of 6/30/2002 |
% Change in Total 6/30/2001-6/30/2002 |
% Chapter 7 as of 6/30/2002 |
|
| Total | 1,466,105 | 8.6% | 70.3% |
| Alabama | 39,189 | 8.5% | 45.3% |
| Middle | 8,329 | 7.0% | 47.0% |
| North | 23,852 | 7.0% | 45.4% |
| South | 7,008 | 16.2% | 42.9% |
| Alaska | 1,301 | -4.4% | 91.2% |
| Arizona | 26,580 | 20.6% | 79.9% |
| Arkansas | 21,526 | 10.6% | 58.1% |
| East | 13,841 | 12.3% | 52.8% |
| West | 7,685 | 7.7% | 67.7% |
| California | 143,088 | -0.1% | 81.3% |
| Central | 81,982 | -0.2% | 82.5% |
| East | 29,738 | -1.0% | 85.3% |
| North | 18,681 | 2.6% | 70.7% |
| South | 12,687 | -1.1% | 80.0% |
| Colorado | 18,694 | 10.5% | 86.8% |
| Connecticut | 11,024 | -1.1% | 83.6% |
| District Of Columbia | 2,392 | -0.7% | 69.2% |
| Delaware | 2,887 | 5.8% | 63.8% |
| Florida | 86,091 | 9.4% | 72.2% |
| Middle | 49,203 | 11.6% | 72.4% |
| North | 6,133 | 6.5% | 79.2% |
| South | 30,755 | 6.5% | 70.6% |
| Georgia | 71,389 | 11.9% | 40.8% |
| Middle | 17,109 | 7.0% | 43.0% |
| North | 39,613 | 16.1% | 44.9% |
| South | 14,667 | 7.2% | 27.1% |
| Hawaii | 4,681 | -0.7% | 89.1% |
| Idaho | 8,186 | 8.0% | 86.6% |
| Illinois | 75,861 | 13.5% | 73.0% |
| Central | 14,643 | 12.6% | 85.4% |
| North | 52,784 | 14.7% | 69.8% |
| South | 8,434 | 8.1% | 71.2% |
| Indiana | 49,920 | 17.4% | 80.7% |
| North | 19,646 | 19.8% | 83.7% |
| South | 30,274 | 15.8% | 78.8% |
| Iowa | 10,862 | 12.4% | 94.8% |
| North | 4,073 | 4.2% | 96.3% |
| South | 6,789 | 18.0% | 93.8% |
| Kansas | 13,796 | 9.9% | 81.7% |
| Kentucky | 25,877 | 9.6% | 83.6% |
| East | 11,329 | 11.2% | 87.3% |
| West | 14,548 | 8.4% | 80.7% |
| Louisiana | 25,777 | 4.2% | 60.4% |
| East | 9,344 | -1.8% | 67.3% |
| Middle | 3,525 | 17.0% | 70.1% |
| West | 12,908 | 5.8% | 52.7% |
| Maine | 4,239 | 1.0% | 91.8% |
| Maryland | 33,857 | 2.7% | 67.0% |
| Massachusetts | 16,444 | -1.4% | 84.7% |
| Michigan | 49,437 | 19.8% | 70.9% |
| East | 35,173 | 22.7% | 68.8% |
| West | 14,264 | 13.3% | 75.9% |
| Minnesota | 17,270 | 13.5% | 83.0% |
| Mississippi | 21,688 | 5.5% | 64.7% |
| North | 7,875 | 8.2% | 65.2% |
| South | 13,813 | 4.0% | 64.4% |
| Missouri | 31,063 | 11.0% | 73.1% |
| East | 16,695 | 5.4% | 66.4% |
| West | 14,368 | 18.3% | 80.9% |
| Montana | 3,914 | 9.4% | 88.1% |
| Nebraska | 7,152 | 12.1% | 81.1% |
| Nevada | 18,236 | 15.2% | 74.2% |
| New Hampshire | 3,492 | -1.5% | 90.0% |
| New Jersey | 39,781 | 0.5% | 62.9% |
| New Mexico | 8,021 | 8.1% | 89.6% |
| New York | 65,444 | 2.8% | 80.0% |
| East | 24,120 | -2.2% | 77.6% |
| North | 15,174 | 4.8% | 80.6% |
| South | 13,626 | 5.0% | 87.0% |
| West | 12,524 | 8.6% | 76.2% |
| North Carolina | 34,293 | 13.5% | 46.5% |
| East | 14,248 | 15.2% | 48.8% |
| Middle | 10,947 | 9.0% | 40.7% |
| West | 9,098 | 16.6% | 50.0% |
| North Dakota | 1,930 | -4.5% | 96.6% |
| Ohio | 71,553 | 15.6% | 80.2% |
| North | 37,203 | 17.0% | 82.6% |
| South | 34,350 | 14.1% | 77.6% |
| Oklahoma | 22,623 | 8.3% | 87.9% |
| East | 4,168 | 4.6% | 92.9% |
| North | 5,674 | 12.0% | 91.6% |
| West | 12,781 | 7.9% | 84.6% |
| Oregon | 21,982 | 11.8% | 88.5% |
| Pennsylvania | 50,507 | 5.9% | 69.1% |
| East | 23,689 | 4.9% | 55.7% |
| Middle | 11,275 | 2.9% | 77.5% |
| West | 15,543 | 9.7% | 83.4% |
| Rhode Island | 4,661 | -0.6% | 91.4% |
| South Carolina | 14,969 | 16.3% | 43.8% |
| South Dakota | 2,540 | 14.0% | 96.1% |
| Tennessee | 60,686 | 10.9% | 46.7% |
| East | 18,922 | 8.5% | 61.4% |
| Middle | 14,572 | 10.3% | 62.2% |
| West | 27,192 | 12.9% | 28.1% |
| Texas | 73,937 | 11.5% | 52.6% |
| East | 11,427 | 19.4% | 53.5% |
| North | 26,167 | 15.9% | 48.5% |
| South | 19,070 | 7.2% | 55.0% |
| West | 17,273 | 5.7% | 55.6% |
| Utah | 20,153 | 19.1% | 64.1% |
| Vermont | 1,607 | 1.7% | 88.8% |
| Virginia | 40,944 | 6.7% | 75.0% |
| East | 29,196 | 7.6% | 70.6% |
| West | 11,748 | 4.5% | 85.9% |
| Washington | 36,659 | 7.5% | 80.0% |
| East | 9,556 | 3.7% | 76.5% |
| West | 27,103 | 9.0% | 81.2% |
| West Virginia | 9,439 | -2.0% | 94.4% |
| North | 3,892 | 1.7% | 93.4% |
| South | 5,547 | -4.4% | 95.1% |
| Wisconsin | 22,336 | 13.8% | 83.5% |
| East | 15,173 | 13.6% | 81.1% |
| West | 7,163 | 14.3% | 88.7% |
| Wyoming | 2,211 | -5.6% | 94.2% |
| Guam | 356 | 103.4% | 87.6% |
| NMI | 20 | 11.1% | 85.0% |
| Puerto Rico | 13,495 | -7.5% | 30.3% |
| Virgin Islands | 45 | -19.6% | 55.6% |
| Circuit | |||
| 1st | 42,331 | -3.1% | 69.2% |
| 2nd | 78,075 | 2.2% | 80.7% |
| 3rd | 93,220 | 3.5% | 66.3% |
| 4th | 133,502 | 7.6% | 63.5% |
| 5th | 121,402 | 8.8% | 56.4% |
| 6th | 207,553 | 14.4% | 68.6% |
| 7th | 148,117 | 14.8% | 77.2% |
| 8th | 92,343 | 11.3% | 75.8% |
| 9th | 265,003 | 5.1% | 81.5% |
| 10th | 85,498 | 11.0% | 81.4% |
| 11th | 196,669 | 10.1% | 55.4% |
| 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 | |||