United States Bankruptcy Courts: Overview and Analysis of Bankruptcy Filings in 2024

This Insight provides information and statistics related to bankruptcy filings in the United States bankruptcy courts for the 12-month period ending December 31, 2024 (this is the most recent reporting period for which data are available). This Insight does not provide legal analysis related to bankruptcy.

Number of Filings

For the 12-month period ending December 31, 2024, the overall number of bankruptcy filings increased by 14.2% compared to the year ending December 31, 2023—increasing from 452,990 to 517,308. The number of filings, however, remained below the number of filings for comparable periods from the pre-COVID-19 era.

Business Filings

Figure 1 shows the number of business and nonbusiness bankruptcy filings for each 12-month period ending December 31 from 2001 to 2024. As shown by the figure, for the 12-month periods ending on December 31 from 2001 to 2024, business bankruptcy filings peaked in 2009 (60,837 filings). Most recently, for the 12-month period ending December 31, 2024, business bankruptcy filings increased from 18,926 to 23,107 (a 22.1% increase), representing the greatest number of business bankruptcy filings since the year ending on December 31, 2017 (23,157 filings). By one measure, there were 694 corporate bankruptcies, a subset of business filings, representing the greatest number of such bankruptcies since 2010 (when there were 828).

The average and median numbers of business bankruptcy filings by district court for the year ending December 31, 2024, were 251 and 113, respectively.

The five district courts with the greatest number of business bankruptcy filings during this period were the courts for the Central District of California (1,633 filings), District of Delaware (1,586), Southern District of Texas (1,252), Middle District of Florida (1,179), and Eastern District of New York (1,046).

For each 12-month period ending on December 31 from 2001 to 2024

Figure is interactive in HTML report version

Source: CRS compilation of data provided by the Administrative Office of U.S. Courts.

Nonbusiness Filings

For each 12-month period included in Figure 1, nonbusiness filings comprised a much greater percentage of total bankruptcy filings than business filings (ranging from a low of 95.5% of all bankruptcy filings in 2024 to a high of 98.1% of all filings in 2005).

As shown by Figure 1, for the 12-month periods ending December 31 from 2001 to 2024, nonbusiness bankruptcy filings peaked in 2005 (2,039,214 filings). The sharp drop-off in nonbusiness filings for the year ending December 31, 2006, from the previous year (a decline of 70.7%) likely reflects changes made to bankruptcy laws in 2005 with the enactment of the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act. Nonbusiness filings increased again as a result of the Great Recession, which began in December 2007, and later fell below 1 million filings again for the year ending December 31, 2014.

Most recently, for the 12-month period ending December 31, 2024, nonbusiness filings increased from 434,064 to 494,201 (a 13.9% increase), representing the greatest number of nonbusiness bankruptcy filings since the year ending December 31, 2020 (522,808). One bankruptcy observer stated, "as anticipated, we saw a steady increase in bankruptcy filings throughout 2024 and expect that growth trend to continue throughout 2025 ... Modest rises in household debt and elevated delinquency rates reveal the stress households are experiencing and are reflected in the steady increased bankruptcy filing trends."

The average and median number of nonbusiness bankruptcy filings by district court for the year ending December 31, 2024, was 5,372 and 4,357, respectively.

The five district courts with the greatest number of nonbusiness bankruptcy filings during this period were the courts for the Central District of California (24,278 filings), Northern District of Illinois (20,828), Middle District of Florida (19,915), Northern District of Georgia (18,056), and Eastern District of Michigan (16,627).

Filings by Bankruptcy Chapter

Figure 2 provides, for the 12-month period ending December 31, 2024, the number and percentage of business and nonbusiness filings that were filed under each chapter of the Bankruptcy Code. For both business and nonbusiness filings, Chapter 7 was the most common chapter used by debtors during this period (comprising 54.5% of business filings and 60.3% of nonbusiness filings). Under Chapter 7, any assets of a debtor not exempt from creditors are reduced to money and the proceeds are distributed to creditors.

Figure 2. Filings by Bankruptcy Chapter For 12-month period ending December 31, 2024

Source: CRS compilation of data provided by the Administrative Office of U.S. Courts.

For business filings, Chapter 11 was the second-most common bankruptcy chapter (36.6% of filings). Under Chapter 11, an individual or, more typically, a business reorganizes its debt while continuing its operations. The third-most common chapter for business filings, Chapter 13 (6.6% of filings), can be used when an individual is the sole proprietor of a business.

For nonbusiness filings, Chapter 13 was the second-most common bankruptcy chapter (39.6% of filings). Chapter 13, sometimes called "wage-earner bankruptcy," is typically used by an individual consumer to reorganize his or her finances and to adopt a repayment plan that is required to be completed within a specified period of time.

Year-Over-Year Change

For the 12-month period ending December 31, 2024, business bankruptcy filings increased across each of the three main bankruptcy chapters compared to the year ending December 31, 2023. Specifically, business filings increased by 23.0% under Chapter 7 (from 10,229 to 12,582), 19.6% under Chapter 11 (from 7,070 to 8,456), and 14.6% under Chapter 13 (from 1,326 to 1,520).

Compared to the year ending December 31, 2023, nonbusiness bankruptcy filings also increased across each main bankruptcy chapter for the 12-month period ending December 31, 2024. Specifically, nonbusiness filings increased by 18.7% under Chapter 7 (from 251,048 to 298,049), 10.9% under Chapter 11 (from 386 to 428), and 7.2% under Chapter 13 (from 182,630 to 195,724).