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U.S. Bankruptcy Courts — Judicial Business 2022

Nonbusiness petitions (i.e., those filed primarily by individuals with mainly consumer debt), which accounted for approximately 97 percent of all petitions, dropped 11 percent to 370,685. Business petitions, which amounted to 3 percent of all petitions, decreased 19 percent to 13,125. The reduction in filings continued the downward trend that began with the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Table 6
U.S. Bankruptcy Courts
Bankruptcy Cases Filed, Terminated, and Pending
Fiscal Years 2018 - 2022

Year	Filed Total	Filed Nonbusiness	Filed Business	Terminated	Pending
2018	773,375	751,272	22,103	816,006	1,027,477
2019	776,674	753,764	22,910	788,667	1,015,179
2020	612,561	590,170	22,391	721,251	906,738
2021	434,540	418,400	16,140	579,469	761,709
2022	383,810	370,685	13,125	467,522	677,108
Percent Change 2021 - 2022	-11.7	-11.4	-18.7	-19.3	-11.1

Petitions may be filed under chapters 7, 9, 11, 12, 13, and 15 of the Bankruptcy Code. Most nonbusiness petitions were filed under chapter 7 or under chapter 13. Most business petitions were filed under chapter 7 or under chapter 11.

Chapters of the Bankruptcy Code

Chapter	Description
Chapter 7	Provides that non-exempt assets be liquidated and proceeds distributed to creditors.
Chapter 9	Covers local governments and instrumentalities.
Chapter 11	Allows businesses to reorganize and continue operating. Also available to individuals whose debts exceed statutory limits for filing under chapter 13.
Chapter 12	Covers family farmers and fishermen.
Chapter 13	Provides that debtors with regular income retain assets and obtain court-confirmed plans to pay off their creditors.
Chapter 15	Applies to foreign corporations and individuals.

Filings under chapter 7 decreased 26 percent to 229,703 and constituted 60 percent of all cases filed. Nonbusiness chapter 7 filings accounted for 97 percent of all chapter 7 cases filed and amounted to 60 percent of all nonbusiness filings. Business chapter 7 petitions went down 20 percent and constituted 58 percent of all business cases filed, compared with 59 percent in 2021.

Cases filed under chapter 13 increased 27 percent to 149,077. These petitions accounted for 39 percent of all filings. Nonbusiness chapter 13 petitions also grew 27 percent, rising to 148,125 and amounting to 40 percent of all nonbusiness petitions. Business chapter 13 petitions grew 6 percent and represented 7 percent of all business cases filed, 1 percent more than 2021.

Chapter 11 filings decreased 15 percent to 4,762. Chapter 11 cases, which typically require significantly more court resources than do cases filed under chapter 7 or chapter 13, accounted for 1 percent of all filings. Business petitions filed under chapter 11 fell 17 percent to 4,274 and amounted to 33 percent of all business cases filed, 1 percent more than in 2021.

Filings under chapters 9, 12, and 15 of the Bankruptcy Code collectively accounted for less than 1 percent of all petitions filed.

Table 7
U.S. Bankruptcy Courts
Bankruptcy Cases Filed, by Chapter of the Bankruptcy Code
Fiscal Years 2018 - 2022

Year	Total	Chapter 7	Chapter 11	Chapter 13	Other1
2018	773,375	477,248	7,014	288,550	563
2019	776,674	478,838	7,320	289,802	714
2020	612,561	409,164	8,188	194,384	825
2021	434,540	310,597	5,622	117,784	537
2022	383,810	229,703	4,762	149,077	268
Percent Change 2021 - 2022	-11.7	-26.0	-15.3	26.6	-50.1
1 "Other" includes cases filed under chapters 9, 12, and 15 of the bankruptcy code.

Bankruptcy filings decreased in all circuits except the Fifth Circuit (filings there grew 2 percent from last year). The District of Columbia Circuit had the largest percentage decline over last year as filings there fell 31 percent. The Ninth Circuit had the largest numeric decrease, a drop of 19,076 cases (down 25 percent from last year).

The federal Judiciary has 90 bankruptcy courts, one in each judicial district except for the Districts of Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands (where bankruptcy cases are heard by a district court judge or a visiting bankruptcy judge), and except for the Eastern and Western Districts of Arkansas (which share a bankruptcy court). This year, 79 of the 90 bankruptcy courts reported fewer filings compared with the previous year.

The number of bankruptcy cases terminated fell 19 percent to 467,522. As terminations outpaced filings, pending cases dropped 11 percent to 677,108.

For data on activity in the U.S. bankruptcy courts, see the F series of tables.

Adversary Proceedings

Adversary proceedings are separate civil lawsuits that arise in bankruptcy cases, including actions to object to or revoke discharges, to obtain injunctions or other equitable relief, and to determine the dischargeability of a debt. Adversary proceedings may be associated with consumer bankruptcy cases, but most arise in cases filed under chapter 11. Because of time limits imposed by Section 546 of the Bankruptcy Code, the number of adversary proceedings filed usually is related to the number of chapter 11 cases filed two years earlier.

In 2022, filings of adversary proceedings declined 21 percent to 12,666. This was 48 percent below the total for 2018. Of the 90 bankruptcy courts, filings of adversary proceedings decreased in 68 courts and increased in 22 courts. Forty-one districts had reductions of 20 percent or more (compared with 60 districts in 2021). The largest numeric decline was a drop of 751 filings (down 72 percent to 294) in the Southern District of New York. Eight districts registered gains of 20 percent or more (compared with 5 districts in 2021). The Northern District of Alabama reported the largest numeric growth, an increase of 152 filings (up 58 percent).

Terminations of adversary proceedings declined 20 percent to 15,827. Pending adversary proceedings dropped 7 percent to 18,811.

Data on adversary proceedings in the bankruptcy courts can be found in Table F-8.