U.S. Consumer Bankruptcy Filing Statistics: What the Numbers Actually Count

How are U.S. bankruptcy filing statistics actually counted?

Bankruptcy is federal law. Federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction over bankruptcy cases, which means a bankruptcy case cannot be filed in a state court. Each of the 94 federal judicial districts handles bankruptcy matters, and in almost all districts those cases are filed in the bankruptcy court.

A statistic starts as a docket entry. A case normally begins when a debtor files a petition with the bankruptcy court, and the clerk records it. The clerk has a statutory obligation to maintain an accurate record of every filing received, and with few exceptions those filings are public records that anyone can view at the courthouse or through PACER, the federal courts' electronic records system.

That is why filing counts exist at all: each one is a tally of docketed petitions, not a survey. Individual courts sometimes publish their own tallies — the District of Minnesota, for example, posts graphed monthly Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 filing totals.

Why doesn't the filing count equal the number of people?

Several things sit between "cases filed" and "people who filed."

A joint case is a single case filed by a married couple, so one docket number can represent two people. Not every filing is a consumer filing either: the totals a court publishes usually cover all chapters, and only cases in which the debts are primarily consumer debts — debts incurred by an individual primarily for a personal, family, or household purpose (11 U.S.C. § 101) — are consumer cases in the sense most readers mean.

Chapter counts also move after filing. A Chapter 7 case may be dismissed for cause, or converted with the debtor's consent to Chapter 11 or Chapter 13 (11 U.S.C. § 707), and a debtor who has already filed under Chapter 7 may be able to change to another chapter. A filing statistic captures the case at the door, not the outcome.

What does federal law say about who gets counted?

Title 11 of the United States Code — the Bankruptcy Code — sets who can be in the count.

Only a person that resides or has a domicile, a place of business, or property in the United States, or a municipality, may be a debtor under title 11 (11 U.S.C. § 109). "Person" includes an individual, a partnership, and a corporation, and governmental units are expressly excluded (11 U.S.C. § 101). Certain entities are barred from Chapter 7 altogether — railroads, banks and savings institutions, credit unions, and domestic insurance companies among them (11 U.S.C. § 109).

A case is commenced by a petition, which the Code defines as a petition under sections 301, 302, 303, or 304 (11 U.S.C. § 101). Before an individual whose debts are primarily consumer debts commences a case, the clerk must give written notice describing Chapters 7, 11, 12, and 13 and their general purposes, benefits, and costs (11 U.S.C. § 342).

Where do state and local rules change the picture?

Bankruptcy law is federal, but the count is assembled locally.

Cases are filed district by district. A single state can contain more than one judicial district, so a state figure is usually several district totals added together, and each court sets its own local rules and forms.

State law also shapes what a filer keeps. Whether you keep personal items and possibly real estate depends on the law of the state where you live and on applicable federal law — one reason the Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 mix differs from state to state. Our state exemption pages cover that law; this page does not restate it.

Administration is not uniform either. The Code refers to the United States trustee, trustee, "or bankruptcy administrator, if any" (11 U.S.C. § 707); the Northern District of Alabama publishes debtor guidance through a Bankruptcy Administrator, and the credit-counseling provider lists for Alabama and North Carolina are published separately.

What does a filing count look like in practice?

Suppose a court reports its Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 filings for a month, as the District of Minnesota does. That pair of numbers tells you how many petitions were docketed under each chapter — nothing about how many were dismissed, converted, or discharged, and nothing about the households behind them.

It is still useful. The chapter mix is the closest thing to a public signal of which route filers in a district actually take, and the two chapters do very different things. Under Chapter 7 a trustee is appointed to take over your property, and property of value may be sold or turned into money to pay creditors. Chapter 13 is a voluntary repayment plan for individuals with regular income, where you can usually keep your property but must agree to pay part of your income to creditors under a court-approved plan.

Cost is not what separates them: the statutory filing fees are close, and set nationally (28 U.S.C. § 1930).

What documents and forms do these numbers come from?

The aggregate numbers are assembled from what individual filers report on standard forms, which is why published statistics can describe debts and assets as well as case counts.

A case normally begins with a voluntary petition. The debtor also files statements listing assets, income, liabilities, and the names and addresses of all creditors and how much they are owed. For an individual case the set typically includes the property schedules, the schedule of property claimed as exempt, the secured and unsecured creditor schedules, a schedule of income and a schedule of expenses, the Statement of Financial Affairs, a statement of current monthly income, and a certificate of credit counseling.

One form in that stack is named for exactly this purpose: the Summary of Assets and Liabilities and Certain Statistical Information. Courts also docket a separate Statistical Summary of Certain Liabilities. Filing late or not at all has consequences — a case may be dismissed if required documents are not filed (11 U.S.C. § 707).

What should you ask a lawyer?

Filing statistics describe crowds; a lawyer describes your case. Bankruptcy law is complicated and not easily described, and court employees cannot give legal advice — the notice the clerk must give before an individual consumer case begins says so directly (11 U.S.C. § 342). A list of private attorneys in your area may be available from your state bar association, local law schools, or a legal aid clinic, and the clerk of your bankruptcy court or your state bar may have information about services offered free or at reduced fee.

Attorneys who provide bankruptcy services must disclose certain information in writing, including the services they will provide and what those services cost. The Code also restricts what a debt relief agency may tell you: it may not misrepresent the services it will provide or the benefits and risks of becoming a debtor (11 U.S.C. § 526), and it must give written disclosures (11 U.S.C. § 527). Questions worth asking:

• In this district, how do cases like mine usually get filed — Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 — and what drives that?
• What in my situation would change that answer?
• What will your services cost, and what is included, in writing?
• What happens to my case if it is dismissed or converted to another chapter?
• What documents do you need from me, and what is the order of events?

Frequently asked questions

How many people file bankruptcy in the United States each year?

We do not publish a verified national filing total, so we will not give you a number here. Federal courts count cases, not people, and each of the 94 judicial districts records its own filings. A joint case filed by a married couple is a single case. Individual courts publish some of their own tallies, and the dockets themselves are public through PACER.

Are Chapter 7 filings more common than Chapter 13 filings?

The mix varies by district, and we do not publish verified counts for either chapter. What is documented is that the vast majority of bankruptcy cases are filed under one of the three main chapters — Chapter 7, Chapter 11, and Chapter 13 — and that some courts, such as the District of Minnesota, publish their own graphed monthly Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 totals.

Where do official bankruptcy filing statistics come from?

They come from court dockets. The clerk of each bankruptcy court has a statutory obligation to maintain an accurate record of all filings received, and with few exceptions those filings are public records viewable at the courthouse or through PACER. Credit reporting agencies collect their information the same way — the bankruptcy court does not report to them.

Does a married couple filing together count as one filing or two?

One. A joint case is a single case filed by a married couple, with one case number, even though two people are affected. That is one reason the number of cases filed is smaller than the number of people going through bankruptcy in a given period, and why "filings" and "filers" are not interchangeable words.

Do filing statistics tell me anything about my own case?

Very little. A filing count is a tally of petitions docketed under each chapter; it records nothing about which cases were later dismissed, converted to another chapter, or discharged. Your own situation turns on your income, your property, your debts, and the exemption law of the state where you live — not on how many neighbors filed last year.

Is my bankruptcy filing public?

Generally yes. With few exceptions, filings in the bankruptcy court are public records, and any person or organization can view them at the courthouse or through PACER. Credit reporting agencies gather bankruptcy information from those public records; the bankruptcy court does not report to credit bureaus and does not verify what appears in a credit file.

Sources

• 11 U.S.C. § 101 — Definitions · official source
• 11 U.S.C. § 109 — Who may be a debtor · official source
• 11 U.S.C. § 342 — Notice · official source
• 11 U.S.C. § 526 — Restrictions on debt relief agencies · official source
• 11 U.S.C. § 527 — Disclosures · official source
• 11 U.S.C. § 707 — Dismissal of a case or conversion to a case under chapter 11 or 13 · official source
• 28 U.S.C. § 1930 — Bankruptcy fees · official source
• COB official page — Understanding Bankruptcy
• Bankr. W.D. La. official page — FAQs
• Bankr. D. Minn. official page — Graphed Chapter 7 & 13 Filing Statistics [https://www.mnb.uscourts.gov/graphed-chapter-7-13-filing-statistics]
• CANB official page — Statistical Summary of Certain Liabilities | United States Bankruptcy Court
• D. Guam Bankruptcy Bankruptcy Information Sheet
• U.S. Bankr. Ct. D. Alaska, The Forms Individuals and Married Couples Need to File Bankruptcy
• Bankr. S.D. Ga. official page — Filing Requirements - Chapter 13 Petition
• Bankr. N.D. Ill. official page — A bankruptcy case WILL BE DISMISSED if these required documents are not filed.
• Bankruptcy Administrator for the Northern District of Alabama, Understanding Bankruptcy
• Bankr. E.D. La. official guidance — Chapter 13 Form Packet
• USTP Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) – Consumer Information

Related

• Find your local bankruptcy court
• What bankruptcy actually costs to file
• Build your personalized roadmap
• 11 U.S.C. § 101 — Definitions
• Bankruptcy glossary
• Find a bankruptcy lawyer by state