Total commercial Chapter 11 bankruptcies for the month of June 2018 were 306, representing a 49 percent decrease from the 601 commercial chapter 11 filings in June 2017, according to data provided by Epiq Systems, Inc. Total commercial bankruptcies decreased to 3,020 filings in June 2018 from the 3,492 registered in June 2017.
Total U.S. bankruptcy filings in June 2018 fell 5 percent to 63,697 from the 66,832 total filings in June 2017. Noncommercial bankruptcies for June 2018 decreased 4 percent to 60,677 from the 63,340 filings in June 2017.
Commercial bankruptcies registered a 5 percent decline as the 19,077 filings during the first half of 2018 decreased from the 20,058 filings during the first six months of 2017. The 2,712 total commercial chapter 11s for the first half of 2018 represented a drop of 11 percent from the commercial chapter 11 filing total of 3,035 for the first half of 2017.
Total bankruptcy filings during the first six months of the year (Jan. 1-June 30) decreased 3 percent to 388,199 from the 399,522 total filings during the same period in 2017. Total consumer filings also decreased slightly, decreasing 3 percent to 369,122 during the first six months of 2018 from the 379,464 total consumer filings during the same period a year ago.
"As corporate and consumer debt loads soar in an environment of rising interest rates and global financial challenges, access to the financial shelter of bankruptcy is critical,” said American Bankruptcy Institute Executive Director Samuel J. Gerdano. “Two ABI initiatives aim to make the financial fresh start of bankruptcy more accessible to struggling households and businesses.”
Congress is considering the recommendations of ABI's Commission to Study the Reform of Chapter 11 for restructuring small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). ABI’s Commission on Consumer Bankruptcy recently concluded its open meetings to examine improvements to consumer bankruptcy and will release its recommendations next year.
The average nationwide per capita bankruptcy filing rate for the first six calendar months of 2018 (Jan. 1-June 30) decreased slightly to 2.50 (total filings per 1,000 per population) from 2.51 for the first five months. The average total filings per day in June 2018 were 3,033, a 0.16 percent decrease from the 3,038 total daily filings in June 2017. States with the highest per capita filing rate (total filings per 1,000 population) through the first six months of 2018 were:
- Alabama (5.67)
- Tennessee (5.48)
- Georgia (4.53)
- Mississippi (4.33)
- Illinois (3.81)
ABI has partnered with Epiq Systems, Inc. in order to provide the most current bankruptcy filing data for analysts, researchers and members of the news media. Epiq Systems is a leading provider of managed technology for the global legal profession.