In contrast to the overall trend for 2022, the first few months of 2023 show a year-over-year increase in bankruptcy filings, according to Docket Alarm data.
Across all chapters of the bankruptcy code, the first quarter of the year saw 106,680 bankruptcy filings, up from 92,421 filings in 2022, an increase of over 15%.
Bankruptcy filings have been down, year-over-year, throughout most of the COVID-19 era. That trend, potentially driven by social safety measures like stimulus checks and the Paycheck Protection Program, showed signs of reversal in the summer of 2022. The 15% increase could indicate effects of widely-reported inflation, and an economic climate colored by layoffs at high-profile companies like Meta and Amazon.
Regional Trends
The increase in bankruptcy filings is, largely, a nationwide trend. The Eastern District of Missouri, encompassing Kansas City, saw a 33% decline in bankruptcy filings. Maine and Western New York also saw double-digit decreases in year-over year quarterly filings, Many areas, like Colorado and the Northern District of California, saw single-digit decreases.
Hardest hit by the percentage increases from last year are districts in the Deep South and Appalachia, especially the Southern District of West Virginia as well as the Southern District of Texas, covering Houston.
