Bankruptcies are at the highest level since 2005

Bankruptcies are at the highest level since 2005, when
2,078,415 were filed before Congress passed amendments to
the Bankruptcy Code, said ABI.

In October 2005, Congress implemented legislation making it
more difficult for filers to prove they should be allowed to
clear their debts in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, forcing more to
file under Chapter 13. The law triggered more Americans to
rush to file for bankruptcy in the months before the law
went into affect.

The ABI report said business bankruptcy filings rose 32% in
the third quarter of 2009 to 15,177, and filings for the
first nine months of the year totaled 45,510, topping the
total 43,546 business bankruptcies filed in 2008.

Personal bankruptcies increased 33% to 373,308 during the
last quarter, led by a 42% hike in Chapter 7 filings, which
totaled 265,721. The number of consumers filing Chapter 13
bankruptcies rose 15% to 107,142 filings in the third
quarter, according to ABI.

During a twelve-month period ending Sept. 30 2009, the
report said total filings increased more than 34% to
1,402,816, compared to 1,042,993 in the same period of
2008.