Legal Filings

Bankruptcy Filings

Year-over-year change in total bankruptcy filings

What is the current Bankruptcy Filings reading?

BANKRUPTCY FILINGS YOY CHANGE
12.2%
increase in bankruptcy filings year-over-year

Bankruptcy Filings YoY Change: 12.2% as of 2026-Q2. Source: Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts.

The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts reported total bankruptcy filings changed 12.2% year over year for Q2 2026.

Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts Table F-2 shows total bankruptcy filings changed 12.2% year over year for the rolling-year period ending Q2 2026.

The Chapter 7-to-Chapter 13 filing ratio is a separate composition measure. It compares cases filed under the two chapters; the ratio does not establish a filer's motive, income, assets, repayment capacity, or case outcome, and neither does the total filing count.

The 12.2% year-over-year change describes filing volume only. Household-level causes or sequences would require evidence linked to individual cases; Table F-2 does not supply that information.

Source: Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts · Source data ↗ · Latest: 2026-Q2
Related signals confirming this trend
The Wipeout Ratio
1.8x
Chapter 7-to-Chapter 13 filing composition from rolling-year U.S. Courts totals
Legal Filings
The Buffer
2.7% ↑ Worsening
The national savings rate remains 56% below the pre-pandemic average
Buffer Depletion
Falling Behind
4.73% ↓ Improving
The broadest delinquency measure spans mortgages, credit cards, auto loans, and student debt
Debt Stress

Explore Further

📊 Bankruptcy Statistics 2026 → 🛟 Bankruptcy: What to Know → 📖 What Is Chapter 7 Bankruptcy? → 📖 What Is Chapter 13 Bankruptcy? →

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How has Bankruptcy Filings changed over time?

CSV Chart Card
Bankruptcy filings, year-over-year change
Bankruptcy filings year-over-year change, percentage
Bankruptcy Filings
Data: Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts Updated Aug 2026

Most affected counties

Counties with the highest default and legal scores in the County Distress Index.

1 Chambers County AL 99.9 2 Shelby County TN 99.8 3 Houston County AL 99.7 4 Tift County GA 99.6 5 Montgomery County AL 99.5 6 Panola County MS 99.5 7 Dale County AL 99.5 8 Union Parish LA 99.4 9 Morehouse Parish LA 99.3 10 Letcher County KY 99.3
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Historical data
Quarterly · Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts
Period Value YoY Change
Q2 2026 12.2% +0.7 pp
Q1 2026 11.9% -1.2 pp
Q4 2025 11% -3.2 pp
Q3 2025 10.6% -5.6 pp
Q2 2025 11.5% —
Q1 2025 13.1% —
Q4 2024 14.2% —
Q3 2024 16.2% —

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Bankruptcy Filings YoY Change?

Year-over-year change in total bankruptcy filings

Why does Bankruptcy Filings YoY Change matter for financial distress?

Bankruptcy Filings YoY Change is one of the indicators tracked by the American Distress Index (ADI), which measures five dimensions of U.S. household financial distress: Delinquency, Default & Legal, Debt Burden, Labor, and Safety Net & Buffer. Changes in this indicator contribute to the overall distress picture.

Where does the Bankruptcy Filings YoY Change data come from?

This data comes from Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts. More information: https://www.uscourts.gov/data-table-numbers/f-2. The American Distress Index updates this indicator quarterly.

Ross Kilburn
Written by

Ross Kilburn, Founder

American Default Research · Seattle, Washington
𝕏 @

Two decades working directly with financially distressed American households — from property preservation in 2003, to negotiating over 1,000 short sales during the Great Recession, to foreclosure defense marketing today. Author, The Ark Law Group Complete Guide to Short Sales (Auroch Press, 2013). Twice named to Puget Sound Business Journal Fast 50 for Ark Law Group. B.A., University of California, Berkeley, 1992. Founded American Default Research in 2026 to fill a gap in public data that had been empty since 2013.

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Why does Bankruptcy Filings matter?

Bankruptcy Filings is one of 98 live indicators tracked by American Default Research. The methodology page explains sources, update cadence, and how the index uses its published inputs.
View methodology →
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