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Bankruptcy Up 22% In August From 2008

If you are thinking about declaring bankruptcy, you are certainly not alone. The national bankruptcy statistics have been released for August, and rates are up again from last year. The Automated Access to Court Electronic Records show that consumer bankruptcy rates are up by 22 percent in August of 2009, as compared with bankruptcy rates from August of 2008. There were 954,911 bankruptcy filings in August of this year, compared to 703,732 in August of last year.

Robert Lawless, a professor of law at the University of Illinois, predicts that 1.45 million individuals will file for bankruptcy this year, numbers that have not been seen since the bankruptcy reform that took place in 2005.

The reasons for the significant increase in bankruptcy filings continue to be tied to the weak economy and the housing crisis. More than anything else, job loss, layoffs, and the loss of regular income has lead to a growing number of those petitioning for bankruptcy, although other common reasons still include divorce, medical emergencies, failed business ventures, and other unexpected events. Job loss can also lead to the loss of health insurance - a loss that could lead to bankruptcy in the event of a medical emergency. Still, the states suffering from the highest numbers of bankruptcies are also the states suffering the worst housing issues.

Lawless expects that bankruptcy filings will continue to be high even after the economy continues to improve.

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