Overall individual filings increased four percent in October 2022, as the 30,809 filings were up over the 29,695 individual filings registered in October 2021. The 1,886 total commercial filings in October 2022 represented a five percent increase from 1,798 commercial filings in October 2021. Commercial chapter 11s increased two percent in October 2022, to 304 filings from 297 filings the previous year. Small business filings, captured as subchapter V elections within chapter 11, increased 28 percent to 131 in October 2022 from 102 in October 2021. 

“With inflation increasing the costs of goods and services, and with interest rates rising, families and businesses have been presented with tough financial decisions,” said ABI Executive Director Amy Quackenboss. “Though filing rates are still below their pre-pandemic totals, struggling households and businesses are still turning to bankruptcy for relief from mounting economic challenges.”

All filing chapters in October 2022 registered a decrease compared to September’s figures. October’s total bankruptcy filings represented a two percent decrease when compared to the 33,194 total filings recorded the previous month. Total individual filings for October represented a one percent decrease from September individual filing total of 31,179. Individual chapter 13 filings also registered a one percent decrease from September’s individual chapter 13 total of 13,814. The commercial filing total represented a seven percent decrease from the September commercial filing total of 2,015. Commercial chapter 11 filings decreased 32 percent from the 445 filings the previous month, while subchapter V elections within chapter 11 decreased 16 percent from the 156 filed in September.

“While comparing month-over-month or year-over-year filings is one way to determine what's trending in the bankruptcy market, the delta between new filings and closed cases is another valuable capacity metric,” said Gregg Morin, Vice President of Business Development and Revenue at Epiq Bankruptcy.

Not since 2010 have there been more new filings in a year than cases that were closed and it’s trending that way again in 2022, as there have been 61,857 more cases closed than were opened through October 2022 compared to the same period in 2021. For the past four months, the difference has steadily decreased, from 7,627 in July, to 6,516 in August, 5,291 in September, and 3,252 in October.