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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mana Zarinejad
(703) 739-0800 ext. 125
Quarterly Bankruptcy Filings
Post Significant Drop
Data Show Bankruptcies May Be Leveling
Off
May 24, 1999, Alexandria, Va.—The total number of new bankruptcies filed during
the first three months of 1999 dropped to 330,784, posting the lowest number of filings
since the final quarter of 1996, according to data released by the Administrative Office
of the U.S. Courts.
The number of bankruptcies filed during the 12-month period ending March 31, 1999
totaled 1,419,199, a slight drop of 0.3 percent from the previous 12-month period, when
filings totaled 1,423,128. Total bankruptcies for the 12-month period mark the first
decrease since the identical period in 1996.
The statistics are released as the Senate plans to consider S. 625, the
"Bankruptcy Reform Act of 1999," legislation targeting the increase in
bankruptcy filings over the past several years. The House passed a similar bill earlier
this month.
Personal bankruptcies for the quarter decreased to 321,604 (down by 5.9 percent when
compared to the first quarter of 1998), and personal filings for the 12-month period
ending March 31 increased by a fraction of a percent to 1,378,071.
"While bankruptcies are still high, the leveling off in the rate of growth may be
the first sign in an actual decline," said Samuel J. Gerdano, executive
director of the American Bankruptcy Institute.
Business bankruptcies continued their decline in the first quarter, consistent with the
health of the national economy, dropping to 9,180, a 21.9 percent decrease from the same
three-month period in 1998. Business filings decreased during the 12-month period ending
March 31 to 41,128, a 21.9 percent drop from the previous 12-month period.
The chapter* breakdown of personal filings for the first quarter is: 228,285 chapter
7s, 155 chapter 11s, and 93,164 chapter 13s. Chapter 7 bankruptcies represent 71.0 percent
of all personal bankruptcies during the quarter.
The chapter breakdown of personal filings for the 12-month period ending March 31 is:
991,238 chapter 7s, 788 chapter 11s, and 386,045 chapter 13s. Chapter 7 bankruptcies
represent 71.9 percent of all personal bankruptcies during the 12-month period.
The chapter breakdown of business filings for the first quarter is: 5,640 chapter 7s,
1,784 chapter 11s, 266 chapter 12s, and 1,481 chapter 13s.
The chapter breakdown of business filings for the 12-month period ending March 31 is:
25,811 chapter 7s, 7,222 chapter 11s, 859 chapter 12s, and 7,200 chapter 13s.
For statistics on a particular region or historical trends or to talk to someone in
your area, contact ABI Public Affairs Coordinator Mana Zarinejad at (703) 739-0800 or at mana@abiworld.org. Statistics can also be retrieved
online at http://www.abiworld.org/stats/newstatsfront.html.
Top Districts With Highest
Percentage Decreases
in Filings From April 1, 1998 through March 31, 1999
District |
Percentage Decrease |
| 1 Northern District of Alabama |
-10.7 % |
| 2 District of Massachusetts |
-10.6 % |
| 3 Northern District of Mississippi |
- 9.2 % |
| 4 District of Minnesota |
- 8.7 % |
| 5 Western District of Tennessee |
- 7.5% |
Top Districts With Highest Percentage Increases
in Filings From April 1, 1998 through March 31, 1999
District |
Percentage Increase |
| 1 Hawaii |
25.6 % |
| 2 District of North
Dakota |
15.7 % |
| 3 District of Nevada |
13.8 % |
| 4 Northern District of
Florida |
10.3 % |
| 5 Eastern District of
North Carolina |
9.0 % |
ABI is the largest multi-disciplinary, non-partisan
organization dedicated to research and education on matters related to insolvency. ABI is
not an advocacy group. Instead ABI was founded in 1982 to provide Congress, its members,
journalists and the public-at-large with unbiased analysis of bankruptcy issues. The ABI
membership includes nearly 7,000 attorneys, bankers, judges, professors, lenders,
turnaround specialists, accountants and other bankruptcy professionals providing a forum
for the exchange of ideas and information. For additional information on ABI, visit ABI
World at http://www.abiworld.org.
*Definitions from Bankruptcy Overview: Issues, Law and Policy, by the American Bankruptcy
Institute
Chapter 7 of the Bankruptcy Code is available to both
individual and business debtors. Its purpose is to achieve a fair distribution to
creditors of whatever non-exempt property the debtor has and to give the individual debtor
a fresh start through the discharge in bankruptcy.
Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code is available for
both consumer and business debtors. Its purpose is to rehabilitate a business as a going
concern or reorganize an individual’s finances through a court-approved
reorganization plan.
Chapter 12 of the Bankruptcy Code is designed to
give special debt relief to a family farmer with regular income from farming.
Chapter 13 of the Bankruptcy Code is available for
an individual with regular income whose debts do not exceed specific amounts, typically
used to budget some of the debtor’s future earnings under a plan through which
creditors are paid in whole or in part.
###
Contact: Mana Zarinejad
ABI Public Affairs Coordinator
(703) 739-0800 ext. 125
mana@abiworld.org
Web posted and Copyright
© May 24, 1999, American Bankruptcy Institute.
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