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The total number of bankruptcies filed in federal courts remained stable in the 12-month period ending June 30, 2005, rising 0.1 percent. The number of bankruptcy cases filed in this 12-month period totaled 1,637,254, up from the 1,635,725 bankruptcy cases filed in the 12-month period ending June 30, 2004. However, quarterly filings for the period from April 1, 2005 to June 30, 2005, rose 11.0 percent when compared to the same period in fiscal year 2004. The data were released today by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts.

Non-business filings for the period totaled 1,604,848, up 0.3 percent from the 1,599,986 non-business filings during the 12-month period ending June 30, 2004. In the 12-month period ending June 30, 2005, business filings dropped to 32,406 down 9.3 percent from 35,739 filings reported in the previous 12-month period.

Here are the F-2 bankruptcy statistics tables for the 12-month and 3-month period ending June 30, 2005, and the F-2 Table comparing 2004 and 2005: Table F (12 Month Period) (xls) and Table F-2 (3 Months Period) (xls), and Table F-2 (12 Months Period) (xls).

Filings by Quarter

The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005, became law on April 20, 2005, although many of its provisions will take effect on October 17, 2005. During the third quarter, April 1, 2005 to June 30, 2005, of the Judiciary's 2005 fiscal year, just prior to and in the months after the Act became law, 467,333 bankruptcies were filed. That is an increase of over 66,000 cases when compared to the second quarter filings totaling 401,149, and an 11.0 percent increase from the 421,110 cases filed in the third quarter of fiscal year 2004.

The overall quarterly increase was primarily fueled by a surge in Chapter 7 filings. Chapter 7 filings rose 17.7 percent, from 308,028 during the third quarter of the Judiciary's 2004 fiscal year to 362,481 during the third quarter of the 2005 fiscal year. For a breakdown of filings by all chapters for the quarter, see Table F-2 (3 month period).

Filings by Chapter, 12-month Period

Of the total number of bankruptcy filings in the 12-month period ending June 30, 2005, there were 1,196,212 Chapter 7 filings, a 2.5 percent increase over the 1,167,101 Chapter 7 filings for the same period in 2004. The next largest group of filings was Chapter 13 filings at 433,945, a 5.1 percent drop from the 457,171 filings in the 12-month period ending June 30, 2004. Chapter 12 filings totaled 290, a 4.0 percent drop from the 302 filings in the 12-month period ending June 30, 2004. Chapter 11 filings also fell, from 11,048 in June 2004 to 6,703 in the 12-month period ending June 30, 2005.

Bankruptcy Chapters

Chapter 7 is designed to allow individuals to keep certain exempt property while the remaining property is sold to repay creditors. Chapter 11 provides for a business to continue operations while formulating a plan to repay its creditors. Chapter 12 is designed to meet the needs of financially distressed family farmers. Under Chapter 13 bankruptcy, creditors may be repaid in installments, in full or in part, over a 3- to 5-year period. Chapter 15 of the Bankruptcy Code, created by the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005, deals with cross-border insolvency and governs the manner in which a foreign court may enlist the aid of a U.S. bankruptcy court.

For more on bankruptcy, go to the Judiciary's website at www.uscourts.gov/library/bankbasic.pdf or to www.fjc.gov/federal/courts.nsf. Local bankruptcy court rules can be found at www.uscourts.gov/rules/bk-localrules.html. A breakdown of the latest data on bankruptcy filings follows and also is available on the Judiciary's website under Bankruptcy Statistics at www.uscourts.gov/bnkrpctystats/bankruptcystats.htm.

Quarterly Filings*

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

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