Total U.S. bankruptcy filings increased 5 percent in May 2017 over May of last year, according to data provided by Epiq Systems, Inc. Bankruptcy filings totaled 69,668 in May 2017, up from the May 2016 total of 66,138. The 66,096 consumer bankruptcy filings in May 2017 were also up 5 percent over the May 2016 consumer total of 62,726. Total commercial filings also climbed 5 percent in May 2017, as the 3,572 filings increased slightly over the 3,412 commercial filings registered in May 2016. However, total commercial chapter 11 filings decreased 8 percent to 563 in May 2017, down from the May 2016 total of 613.
 
“More consumers and businesses faced with mounting financial pressures are turning to the fresh start of bankruptcy,” said ABI Executive Director Samuel J. Gerdano. “Two ABI efforts are underway to modernize the Bankruptcy Code to meet the current needs of struggling households and business.”
 
ABI’s Commission on Consumer Bankruptcy recently started holding open meetings to gather suggested improvements that can be made to the existing consumer bankruptcy system. The Consumer Commission's next open meeting will be held on July 15 at the NACTT Annual Meeting in Seattle, Washington, and is a field hearing for the Commission's Chapter 13 Committee. (For more information on how to participate, please click here.) The Consumer Commission, formed last December, will release its final report of recommendations at ABI’s Winter Leadership Conference in December 2018.
 
To provide updates to the Code for businesses to have a better chance to reorganize rather than liquidate, ABI’s Commission to Study the Reform of Chapter 11 released its final report of recommendations in December 2014. The recommendations have been recognized in a number of court opinions, including the Supreme Court’s March 22 opinion in Czyzewski v. Jevic Holding Corporation, No. 15-649.
 
Total bankruptcy filings for the month of May increased 3 percent when compared to the 67,723 total filings recorded the previous month. May’s commercial filing total represented a 7 percent increase from the April 2017 commercial filing total of 3,351. Commercial chapter 11 filings decreased 2 percent when compared to the 575 filings in April 2017. Total noncommercial filings for May also represented a 3 percent increase from the April 2017 noncommercial filing total of 64,372.
 
The average nationwide per capita bankruptcy filing rate in May was 2.57 (total filings per 1,000 per population), a slight increase from the 2.54 filing rate during the first four months of the year. Average total filings per day in May 2017 were 3,167, a 1 percent increase from the 3,149 total daily filings in May 2016. States with the highest per capita filing rates (total filings per 1,000 population) in May 2017 were:

• Alabama (5.82)
• Tennessee (5.66)
• Georgia (4.69)
• Utah (4.14)
• Mississippi (4.13)