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NEWS RELEASE
Bankruptcy Filings Down for Fiscal Year 2007,
Up for Quarter

Karen Redmond, 202-502-2600
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November 19, 2007 — Bankruptcy cases filed in federal courts totaled 801,269 for the 12-month period ending September 30, 2007, down 28 percent when compared to the 1,112,542 filings in Fiscal Year 2006. However, according to the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, the September 2007 filings are the highest of any previous 12-month period since September 2006.

Bankruptcy filings dropped precipitously in 2006 after implementation of the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005. Now, in fiscal year 2007—although filings remain well below pre-BAPCPA levels—total filings continue to increase.

The federal Judiciary's fiscal year is the 12-month period ending September 30. The bankruptcies reported are for October 1, 2006 through September 30, 2007.

Additional statistics released today include business and non-business filings for the 12-month period ending September 30, 2007 (Table F-2, 12-month); a comparison of September 2006 and 2007 filings (Table F), 3rd quarter filings (Table F-2, 3-month); monthly filings for the 12-month period ending September 30, 2007 (Table F-2, Monthly); and filings per capita.

Business and Non-Business Filings

For the 12-month period ending September 30, 2007, business filings totaled 25,925, down 5 percent from the 27,333 business filings in September 2006. Non-business filings totaled 775,344 compared to the 1,085,209 non-business bankruptcy filings in September 2006.

Filings Under Chapters 7, 11, 12 and 13

In FY 2007, filings under Chapters 7, 11, and 12 of the Bankruptcy Code fell, while filings under Chapters 13 rose. The largest decline was in Chapter 7 filings.

• Chapter 7 filings in FY 2007 totaled 484,162, down 42 percent from the 833,147 Chapter 7 filings in FY 2006.
• Chapter 11 filings dropped 2 percent, falling from 6,003 in FY 2006 to 5,888 in FY 2007.
• Chapter 13 filings rose 14 percent, from 272,937 in FY 2006 to 310,802 in FY 2006.
• Chapter 12 is designed to meet the needs of financially distressed family farmers. In FY 2007, Chapter 12 filings totaled 361, down 4 percent from the 376 Chapter 12 filings in FY 2006.

Fourth Quarter Filings

The 3-month period ending September 30, 2007, was the Judiciary's final quarter of fiscal year 2007. Bankruptcy filings in the fourth quarter totaled 218,909, up 28 percent from the 171,146 bankruptcy cases filed in the final quarter of FY 2006. For a breakdown of filings by all chapters for the quarter, see Table F-2, 3-month period.

For more on bankruptcy and its chapters, visit the Judiciary's web site or go to www.fjc.gov/federal/courts.nsf. Local bankruptcy court rules and historic data on bankruptcy filings are also available. Additional bankruptcy statistics, including bankruptcies by county, can be found on the Judiciary's PACER system.

Quarterly Filings*

* Because of ongoing corrections to the bankruptcy database, the quarterly data may not total to the most recent annual figures.