Contact:
Hartgen
(703) 739-0800
color='#0000ff'>jhartgen@abiworld.org
MARCH
CONSUMER BANKRUPTCY FILINGS INCREASE 41 PERCENT OVER LAST
YEAR
April 2,
2009, Alexandria,
Va.— U.S. consumer bankruptcy filings increased 41 percent
nationwide in March from the same period a year ago, according to the
American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI), relying on data from the National
Bankruptcy Research Center (NBKRC). The overall March consumer filing
total of 121,413 represented nearly a 24 percent increase from the
February total of 98,344. Chapter 13 filings constituted 25 percent of
all consumer cases in March, nearly a 5 percent decrease from
February.
“Given the great financial stress facing U.S. households today,
the March numbers are consistent with our prediction of over 1.4 million
consumer filings for 2009,” said ABI Executive Director
Samuel J.
Gerdano.
###
face='Times New Roman' size='3'>ABI
size='3'>is the largest multi-disciplinary, nonpartisan organization
dedicated to research and education on matters related to
insolvency.
in 1982 to provide Congress and the public with unbiased analysis of
bankruptcy issues. The
face='Times New Roman' size='3'>ABI
size='3'>membership includes more than 12,000 attorneys, accountants,
bankers, judges, professors, lenders, turnaround specialists and other
bankruptcy professionals providing a forum for the exchange of ideas and
information. For additional information on
w:st='on'>
size='3'>ABI
www.abiworld.org. For additional conference information,
visit
href='http://www.abiworld.org/conferences.html'>
size='3'>http://www.abiworld.org/conferences.html
face='Times New Roman' size='3'>.
size='3'>*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 the debtor’s available non-exempt
property. Unsecured debts not reaffirmed are discharged, providing
a fresh financial start.
size='3'>Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy
Code is available for both business and consumer debtors. Its purpose is
to rehabilitate a business as a going concern or reorganize an
individual’s finances through a court-approved reorganization
plan.
size='3'>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; it is typically used to budget some of the debtor’s
future earnings under a plan through which unsecured creditors are paid
in whole or in part.