There were 212 commercial chapter 11 filings registered in July 2022, a decrease of 13 percent from the 245 filings in July 2021, according to data provided by Epiq Bankruptcy, the leading provider of U.S. bankruptcy filing data. Overall commercial filings decreased 8 percent in July 2022, as the 1,592 filings were down from the 1,723 commercial filings registered in July 2021. Small business filings, captured as subchapter V elections within chapter 11, decreased 3 percent to 104 in July 2022 from 107 in July 2021.
Total bankruptcy filings were 30,848 in July 2022, a 5 percent decline from the July 2021 total of 32,399. Noncommercial bankruptcy filings totaled 29,256 in July 2022, also registering a 5 percent decrease from the July 2021 noncommercial total of 30,676.
“New bankruptcy filings slowed in July, including chapter 13 cases which have been on a steady increase so far this year,” said Chris Kruse, Senior Vice President of Epiq Bankruptcy. “We continue to monitor closely the impact of new variants of the COVID-19 virus, historically low unemployment rates, and fears of difficult economic times ahead, which lead us to anticipate an increase in bankruptcy filings as we exit the summer.”
July’s commercial chapter 11 filings decreased 53 percent from the 449 filings in June 2022. The commercial filing total represented a 15 percent decrease from the June 2022 commercial filing total of 1,878. Subchapter V elections within chapter 11 increased 7 percent from the 97 filed in June 2022. July’s total bankruptcy filings represented a 4 percent decrease when compared to the 32,182 total filings recorded the previous month. Total noncommercial filings for July represented a 3 percent decrease from the June 2022 noncommercial filing total of 30,305.
“In addition to global supply and inflation concerns, rising interest rates pushing overall borrowing costs higher could leave financially distressed consumers and businesses in a precarious economic position,” said ABI Executive Director Amy Quackenboss. “Bankruptcy provides refuge for struggling families and businesses looking to establish a financial fresh start.”
ABI has partnered with Epiq Bankruptcy to provide the most current bankruptcy filing data for analysts, researchers, and members of the news media.