Commercial Chapter 11 filings increased 17 percent in August 2020 from last year, according to data provided by Epiq Systems, Inc., according to the American Bankruptcy Institute. The 526 commercial Chapter 11 filings in August 2020 were up over the 450 filings registered in August 2019.

All other filing categories registered decreases from last year. Overall commercial filings in August totaled 2,472 filings, down 27 percent from the 3,398 filings in August 2019. The 39,349 total U.S. bankruptcy filings for August represented a 41 percent decrease from the August 2019 total of 66,530 filings. The 36,877 consumer filings in August also represented a 42 percent decrease from last year’s consumer total of 63,132.

“A number of key factors continued to keep bankruptcy filings from overwhelming the court system,” said ABI Executive Director Amy Quackenboss. “The CARES Act helped businesses and consumers initially weather the economic shock of the pandemic, collection, eviction and foreclosure activity was largely suspended, and quarantining measures presented challenges for struggling debtors to meet with attorneys. However, with the expiration of government stabilization programs, elevated unemployment levels and growing economic uncertainty, we anticipate a dramatic climb in filings later this year.”

The 526 commercial Chapter 11 filings recorded in August represented an 18 percent decrease from the 644 commercial Chapter 11 filings in July. August business filings decreased 11 percent to 2,472 from July’s business total of 2,780.

Total bankruptcy filings in August represented an 8 percent decrease from the 42,865 total filings in July. The 36,877 consumer filings in August also represented an 8 percent decrease from July’s consumer total of 40,085.

The average nationwide per capita bankruptcy filing rate in August was 1.84 (total filings per 1,000 per population), a slight decrease from the filing rate of 1.89 during the first seven months of 2020. Average total filings per day in August were 1,874, a decrease of 38 percent from the 3,024 total daily filings in August 2019. States with the highest per capita filing rates (total filings per 1,000 population) in August 2020 were:

1. Alabama (4.16)
2. Tennessee (3.65)
3. Delaware (3.49)
4. Mississippi (3.21)
5. Georgia (3.02)