Bankruptcy Filings in First Half of 2007 Up 48 Percent from a Year Ago
Contact:
(703) 739-0800
[email protected]
BANKRUPTCY FILINGS IN FIRST HALF OF 2007 UP 48 PERCENT FROM A YEAR AGO
August 16,
2007,
“The new upward
trend in bankruptcies reflects the economic reality of households under
increasing financial stress,” said
Filings by individuals or households with consumer debt increased 48.34 percent to 391,105 for the six-month period ending June 30, 2007, from the 2006 first-half total of 263,660. The overall percentage of consumers filing for chapter 13 protection fell slightly from 41.15 percent during the first half of 2006 (January 1-June 30) to 38.35 percent over the same period in 2007. Conversely, the first-half 2007 percentage of chapter 7 consumer filers increased to 61.58 percent from the 58.76 percent recorded in the first half of 2006.
Business filings for the six-month period ending June 30, 2007, totaled 12,985, representing a 45.18 percent increase over the first-half 2006 total of 8,944. Chapter 7 liquidations increased to 8,404 in the first half of 2007, a 65.21 percent increase over the 5,087 business chapter 7 filings during the same period in 2006. Chapter 11 reorganizations also rose from 2,370 in the first half of 2006 to 2,713 in the same period of 2007, a 14.47 percent increase.
The 751,056 total filings
for the 12-month period ending June 30 were down 49.41 percent from the
same period in 2006, which totaled 1,484,570 filings, a figure that
includes a surge in cases filed before the implementation date of a
major change in the law. The bankruptcy filing rate per thousand
Nonbusiness filings for the 12-month period ending June 30, 2007, totaled 727,167, down 50 percent from the 1,453,008 total nonbusiness filings experienced over the same period in 2006. Business filings for the 12-month period ending June 30, 2007, totaled 23,889, down 24.31 percent from the 31,562 bankruptcy petitions filed in the 12-month period ending June 30, 2006.
The 450,332 total chapter 7 filings for the 12-month period ending June 30, 2007, represent a 61.34 percent decrease from the 1,164,815 filings from the same period in 2006. Chapter 13 filings fell 5.87 percent to 294,693 in the 12-month period ending June 30, 2007, from 313,085 in the same period last year. Chapter 11 filings also declined, falling 10.25 percent to 5,586 in 2007 from 6,224 in 2006. However, chapter 12 filings rose 7.22 percent from 360 in 2006 to 386 in 2007.
BUSINESS FILINGS for the 3-month period ending June 30, 2007, totaled 6,705, up 38.02 percent from the 4,858 bankruptcy business cases filed in the same period in 2006. NON-BUSINESS FILINGS for the 3-month period ending June 30, 2007, increased 34.95 percent from 150,975 in 2006 to 203,744 in 2007.
The chapter* breakdown of BUSINESS filings for the 3-month period ending June 30, 2007, is: 4,333 chapter 7s, 1,430 chapter 11s, 112 chapter 12s and 821 chapter 13s.
The chapter breakdown of NON-BUSINESS filings for the 3-month period ending June 30, 2007, is: 127,180 chapter 7s, 144 chapter 11s and 76,420 chapter 13s.
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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 11,500 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 http://www.abiworld.org/conferences.html.
*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.
Subprime Mortgage Crisis Webinar Archive Now Available on ABIWorld.org
Contact: John Hartgen
703-739-0800
[email protected]
SUBPRIME
MORTGAGE CRISIS WEBINAR ARCHIVE NOW AVAILABLE ON
September 21, 2007,
Alexandria, Va. — Reporters unable to participate in
the American Bankruptcy Institute’s live “Subprime Mortgage
Crisis” Webinar can now access a recording of the program on
Experts participating in the
Webinar included Prof. Anthony M. Yezer of the George Washington
University Department of Economics (
To access the archived Webinar,
please click on the following link:
http://www.abiworld.org/mediastream/2007/subprime_mort/index.html
###
Hedge Funds Subprime Mortgages and Professional Fee Study Results among the Timely Topics to be Presented at ABIs Winter Leadership Conference
Contact: John Hartgen
703-739-0800
[email protected]
HEDGE FUNDS,
SUBPRIME MORTGAGES AND PROFESSIONAL FEE STUDY RESULTS AMONG THE TIMELY
TOPICS TO BE PRESENTED AT
August 27, 2007, Alexandria,
Va. — The American Bankruptcy Institute’s
(
A plenary session presentation
of the results of
Panel sessions include:
“Loan-to-Own Strategies
of Hedge Funds and Private Equity Firms,” moderated by Stephen
S. Gray of CRG Partners Group LLC (Boston), includes panelists
Paul Coughlin of Longroad Asset Management, LLC (Stamford,
Conn.), Bankruptcy Judge Allan L. Gropper (New York), Larry G.
Halperin of Richards Kibbe & Orbe LLP (New York), Aziz
Hassanali of
Moderator Joseph Samet
of Baker & McKenzie LLP (New York), along with panelists Patti H.
Bass of Bass & Associates, P.C. (Tucson, Ariz.), Robert N.H.
The “Trying Valuation (on
a Budget): Consumer Case Examples” session will be moderated by
Dillon E.
The “Subprime Paradigm:
Lessons on Maximizing Value from the Subprime, 1031 and Servicer
Cases” session, moderated by Lawrence E. Young of
AlixPartners LLP (Dallas), features panelists John Anderson of
RBS Greenwich Capital (Greenwich, Conn.), Melanie L. Cyganowski
of Greenberg Traurig, LLP (New York), Jeffrey W. Dulberg of
Pachulski Stang Ziehl Young Jones & Weintraub LLP (
“Health Care Cases:
Financing, Financial Management and Exit,” to be moderated by
Samuel R. Maizel of Pachulski Stang Ziehl Young Jones &
Weintraub LLP (
Moderator James T.
Markus of Block, Markus & Williams, LLC (
The “Ethics, E-mail, the Web and the Blogosphere: Rules and Values for Practice in Cyberspace” plenary session will be moderated by Terri L. Gardner of Poyner & Spruill LLP; (Raleigh, N.C.) and include panelists Bankruptcy Judge Samuel L. Bufford (Los Angeles), Prof. Paula Franzese of Seton Hall Law School (Newark, N.J.), Will Hornsby of the American Bar Association (Chicago) and author of Boundaries of Legal Marketing, and J. Charles Mokriski of Day Pitney (Boston).
Bankruptcy Judge Eugene R.
Wedoff (Chicago) will moderate the “Supreme Court Year in
Review (and in Prospect)” Judges’ Roundtable, featuring
Bankruptcy Judges Dennis R. Dow (
For more information on the Winter Leadership Conference, please visit http://www.abiworld.org/WLC07.
###
Consumer Bankruptcy Filings Increase 17 Percent in August
Contact: John Hartgen
703-739-0800
[email protected]
CONSUMER BANKRUPTCY FILINGS INCREASE 17 PERCENT IN AUGUST
September 6, 2007,
Alexandria,
'The uptick in August
bankruptcies continues the trend we've seen all year,' observed
###
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.
Professor Mark S. Scarberry to Serve as ABI Resident Scholar for Fall 2007 Semester
Contact: John Hartgen
703-739-0800
[email protected]
PROFESSOR
MARK S. SCARBERRY TO SERVE AS
September 7, 2007,
Alexandria, Va. — Prof. Mark S. Scarberry,
Professor of Law at the Pepperdine University School of Law, will serve
as the Robert M. Zinman
Prof. Scarberry’s work focuses on bankruptcy (particularly chapter 11 business reorganization), contracts, legal philosophy and constitutional law (particularly freedom of religion). A member of Pepperdine’s faculty since 1982, Scarberry currently teaches insolvency courses focused on remedies, creditors' rights and bankruptcy, business reorganization in bankruptcy, and mergers and acquisitions. Scarberry's bankruptcy scholarship includes Scarberry, Klee, Newton & Nickles'Business Reorganization in Bankruptcy: Cases and Materials (now in its third edition from Thomson Gale Publishing (2006)).
In addition to teaching and
writing, he has prepared training materials and helped attorneys provide
pro bono help to low-income consumer bankruptcy debtors as part
of the L.A. County Bar Association/Public Counsel Debtor Assistance
Project. Prior to joining the faculty at Pepperdine, he practiced law
for four years with Jones, Day, Reavis & Pogue (
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Unreimbursed Medical Expenses of Retirees Entitled to Priority Status in Bankruptcy Proceeding According to Latest ABI Poll
Contact: John Hartgen
703-739-0800
[email protected]
UNREIMBURSED
MEDICAL EXPENSES OF RETIREES ENTITLED TO PRIORITY STATUS IN BANKRUPTCY
PROCEEDING, ACCORDING TO LATEST
August 21, 2007, Alexandria,
Va. —A majority of respondents (52 percent) to
Twenty-nine percent of respondents, however, did not agree that medical expenses of retirees should receive a priority status under §507(a)(5). Twenty percent “strongly disagreed” and 9 percent “somewhat disagreed” that unreimbursed medical expenses incurred by retirees of a bankrupt firm are entitled to a priority status under §507(a)(5), subject to the temporal and dollar limitations set forth in the section. Seventeen percent of the respondents did not know or had no opinion on the issue.
The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of California recently ruled in In re Consolidated Freightways Corp. of Delaware (Bankr. C.D. Cal. No RS02-24284 4/26/07) that retiree medical expenses are entitled to priority status under §507(a)(5), subject to the temporal and dollar limitations set forth in the section. The court noted that the legislative history and the public policy behind §507(a)(5) compelled it to include retired employees within the cap amount for a priority status claim.
###
Intellectual Property Law and Chapter 11 Essentials Explored in Two New Products from the ABI Bookstore
Contact: John Hartgen
703-739-0800
[email protected]
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LAW
AND CHAPTER 11 ESSENTIALS EXPLORED IN TWO NEW PRODUCTS FROM THE
September 17,
2007,
Also available is theChapter
11-'101:' The Essentials of Chapter 11 Practice CD-Rom, a
compilation and expansion of a series of articles first written for the
Both the softbound, 100-page
Bankruptcy and its Impact on Intellectual Property manual and
Chapter 11-'101:' The Essentials of Chapter 11 Practice CD-Rom
are available for purchase. Click here to order from the online
http://www.abiworld.org/AM/template.cfm?Section=bookstore
###
ABI Endowment to Fund Study of Claims Trading Associated with Chapter 11 Bankruptcies
Contact:
(703) 739-0800
[email protected]
ABI ENDOWMENT TO FUND STUDY OF CLAIMS TRADING ASSOCIATED WITH CHAPTER 11 BANKRUPTCIES
August 30, 2007, Alexandria, Va. — The American Bankruptcy Institute Endowment Fund has
awarded a $36,900 grant to an international research team examining
claims trading in large chapter 11 cases. The
researchers—Prof.
“We are thrilled to have the opportunity to pursue research into this important and timely subject, and we are honored to be supported in our efforts by the ABI,” said Smith. “No study has yet documented the extent to which chapter 11-related claims trading occurs, or how it might ultimately affect the health of the bankrupt company. It is fitting that the ABI, as the premier professional organization in the field of insolvency, will play a key role in shedding light on these matters.”
The researchers will investigate a number of fundamental issues associated with claims trading, seeking to identify the attributes that make certain firms more likely to experience high levels of such trading, and who the typical buyers and sellers are in claims trading transactions. They will also examine whether the trading activities of distressed investors affect the likelihood of a successful reorganization and if the claims trading process leads to a redistribution of value among different claimants.
The primary source for the researchers will be the records maintained by information management companies that act as claims administrators in chapter 11 cases. These companies aid debtors in building and maintaining complete claimant lists, and help prepare a creditor matrix, assets and liabilities schedules, and other claimant-related information for their debtor client. The researchers will also use additional information on large borrower loan deals to obtain the identities of senior bank claimants and to gather information on the participants in DIP loans.
Prior to joining
the
The ABI Endowment Fund was created in 1989 to provide a secure financial base for the Institute and to provide resources for insolvency research and education. Projects eligible for Endowment funding include research by individuals or entities relating to bankruptcy or insolvency; surveys or other analytical investigation; the education of judges, court personnel, other governmental personnel and the general public; scholarships or other educational grants; support for the Robert M. Zinman Resident Scholar; and support for both the Chief Judge Conrad B. Duberstein National Bankruptcy Memorial Moot Court Competition and ABI’s Corporate Restructuring Competition. Since 1998, the Fund has awarded nearly $750,000 in grants.
###
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 11,500 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 http://www.abiworld.org/conferences.html
ABIs Fourth Annual Caribbean Insolvency Symposium Examines Hedge Funds and Other Cross-Border Insolvency Issues
Contact: John Hartgen
703-739-0800
[email protected]
October 9, 2007, Alexandria,
Va. — The American Bankruptcy Institute
(
This year’s Symposium
will incorporate
Josefina Fernandez McEvoy of K&L Gates LLP (Los Angeles) will moderate the “Nuts and Bolts of Chapter 15 Filing: Cases/Updates” session with panelists including Bankruptcy Judge Gerardo Carlo (San Juan, P.R.), Aristos Galatapoulos of Maples and Calder (Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands), Daniel M. Glosband of Goodwin Procter LLP (Boston) and Gregory S. Grossman of Astigarraga Davis (Miami).
The “View from the Bench
- Litigation Issues” session will be moderated by David A.
Rosendorf of Kozyak,
“Poster Child of Troubled
Industries in the Caribbean - The Hedge Funds,” moderated by
Carol Logue of Bridge Associates, LLC (Spring,
“Offshore or Off the Map?
Recent Liquidation Issues for Offshore Registered Hedge Funds”
features moderator Laura Hatfield of Solomon Harris (Grand
Cayman, Cayman Islands) and panelists Sam Dawson of Solomon
Harris (Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands), Nigel K. Meeson of Conyers
Dill & Pearman (Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands) and Simon
Whicker of KPMG LLP (Grand Cayman;
Bankruptcy Judge. Paul G.
Hyman (
The “Cross-Border Asset Protection and Recovery” session will be moderated by Allison A. Day of Genovese Joblove & Battista, P.A. (Miami) and include panelists Michelle Campbell of AlixPartners LLP (Los Angeles), Edwardo Romero-Ramos of Baker & MacKenzie International (Juarez, Mexico), Paul S. Singerman of Berger Singerman PA (Miami) and Jerome L. Wolf of Duane Morris(Boca Raton, Fla.).
For more information on
###
September Consumer Bankruptcy Filings Increase 23 Percent over Previous Year
Contact:
(703) 739-0800
[email protected]
SEPTEMBER CONSUMER BANKRUPTCY FILINGS INCREASE 23 PERCENT OVER PREVIOUS YEAR
October 2, 2007,
Alexandria,
“Bankruptcy filings
are elevated from a year ago and likely to uptick further through the
end of the year,” said
###
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 11,500 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 http://www.abiworld.org/conferences.html.
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.