Contact: John Hartgen
703-894-5935
CONSUMER
BANKRUPTCY FILINGS DOWN 8 PERCENT THROUGH THE FIRST HALF OF
2011
July 5, 2011, Alexandria,
Va. - U.S. consumer bankruptcy filings totaled 709,303
nationwide during the first six months of 2011 (Jan. 1-June 30), an 8
percent decrease from the 770,117 total consumer filings during 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 June consumer filing total of 119,768 represented a 5
percent decrease from the 126,270 filings recorded in June
2010.
'The drop in bankruptcies for
the first half of the year shows the continued efforts of consumers to
reduce their household debt, and the overall pull back in consumer
credit,' said ABI Executive Director Samuel J.
Gerdano.
The June 2011 filings did
represent a 4 percent increase from the May 2011 consumer bankruptcy
total of 114,803 filings. The percentage of chapter 13 filings for June
was 28 percent, a one percent increase from May.
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ABI is the largest
multi-disciplinary, nonpartisan organization dedicated to research and
education on matters related to insolvency. ABI was founded in 1982 to
provide Congress and the public with unbiased analysis of bankruptcy
issues. The ABI membership includes more than 13,000 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
ABI, visit www.abiworld.org. For additional conference information,
visit
color='#0000ff' size='3' face='Times New


Roman'>http://www.abiworld.org/conferences.html
size='3' face='Times New Roman'>.
NBKRC is an online research
center that offers subscribers access to up-to-date research and
statistics on bankruptcy filings. The database contains complete
information dating back to 1995. For more information on NBKRC, please
visit http://www.nbkrc.com.
*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.
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.
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