Teleconference Featuring Consumer Bankruptcy Fee Study Investigator Discussing Results of Findings, Implications for Bankruptcy System
(December 19, 2011)

Issue:

The results of a ground-breaking study funded by the American Bankruptcy Institute Anthony H.N. Schnelling Endowment Fund and National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges Endowment for Education reveals that the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 (BAPCPA) made the bankruptcy system cumbersome and costlier to use for both debtors and bankruptcy professionals.

The speakers include:

• Prof. Lois R. Lupica, Maine Law Foundation Professor of Law at the University of Maine School of Law, was the study’s reporter and principal investigator. Prof. Lupica teaches bankruptcy, secured transactions, commercial and consumer arbitration, and professional responsibility.


• Samuel Gerdano, ABI's executive director, moderated the teleconference.

Background:

The Consumer Bankruptcy Fee Study’s primary objective was to identify and monetize the costs of consumer bankruptcy access after the enactment of BAPCPA through the analysis of quantitative and qualitative data gathered from court dockets and professionals working within the bankruptcy system. The study found that debtors’ attorneys’ fees plus filing fees and the debtor education fee have increased the total direct access costs (TDAC) for both consumer chapter 7 and 13 cases since BAPCPA took effect in 2005. The study also found that changes in unsecured creditor returns have been “statistically insignificant” as a result of BAPCPA’s new requirements.

View the results of the ABI Consumer Bankruptcy Fee Study by clicking here.

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