Bankruptcy filings in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for Western District of

Journal Record, The (Oklahoma City), Aug 11, 2005 by Journal Record Staff

Bankruptcy filings at the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Oklahoma totaled 1,294 in July, the lowest for any month since February.

Filings for the month were down from 1,425 in June but up 4.5 percent from 1,203 for July 2004, according to a monthly report from the court. Filings at the court have been up from the same month in 2004 for five consecutive months.

Filings for the first seven months of 2005 totaled 9,172, up 10.4 percent from the first seven months of 2004. Filings are on pace to set a new record high for the court.

The 9,172 filings for the first seven months of the year were up 10.6 percent from 8,296 for the first six months of 2003. Filings in 2003 totaled 14,213 and were the highest for any year at the court serving 40 of Oklahoma's 77 counties. Filings at the court in 2004 were down 1.6 percent to 13,987.

Bankruptcy filings have been up sharply since March, when the U.S. Senate passed a bankruptcy bill that President Bush signed into law April 20.

The new law sets an income test for measuring a bankruptcy applicant's ability to repay debts. Those with insufficient assets or income can still file a Chapter 7 bankruptcy after the forfeiture of certain assets and have their remaining debts erased entirely. But filers with an income greater than a state's median - $35,500 in Oklahoma, according to the U.S. Census Bureau - who are able to pay at least $100 a month will instead go into Chapter 13 with a repayment plan that would include credit card charges, medical bills and various other obligations previously avoided under the bankruptcy laws.