Total bankruptcy filings in the United States for July 2013 decreased 10 percent compared to the previous year, according to data provided by Epiq Systems, Inc. July bankruptcy filings totaled 87,684, down from the 97,287 filings registered in July 2012.
Total commercial filings for July 2013 were 3,581, representing a 23 percent decrease from the 4,681 filings during the same period in 2012. Commercial chapter 11 filings totaled 536 in July, a 24 percent decrease from the 702 filed in July 2012. The 84,103 total noncommercial filings for July represented a 9 percent drop from the July 2012 noncommercial filing total of 92,606.
“Year-over-year bankruptcy figures continue to drop as consumers and businesses shore up their balance sheets amid sustained low interest rates,” said ABI Executive Director Samuel J. Gerdano. “We remain on pace this year for perhaps the lowest total new bankruptcies since before the financial crisis in 2008.”
The July bankruptcy filings did show slight increases from June as total filings were up 5 percent from June’s total of 83,603. Noncommercial filings also increased 5 percent in July from the June total of 80,135, and commercial filings increased 3 percent from the June total of 3,468. Commercial chapter 11 filings registered the biggest jump as the July filings increased 8 percent over the 497 filings in June.
The average nationwide per capita bankruptcy-filing rate for the first seven calendar months of 2013 (Jan. 1-July 31) decreased slightly to 3.49 (total filings per 1,000 per population) from the 3.51 rate for the first six months of the year. The average daily filing total in July 2013 was 2,829, a 10 percent decrease from the 3,138 total daily filings in July 2012. States with the highest per capita filing rate (total filings per 1,000 population) through the first seven months of 2013 were:
- Tennessee (6.73)
- Georgia (5.79)
- Alabama (5.72)
- Utah (5.39)
- Illinois (5.33)
ABI has partnered with Epiq Systems, Inc. in order to provide the most current bankruptcy filing data for analysts, researchers and members of the news media. Epiq Systems is a leading provider of managed technology for the global legal profession.