Indiana Bankruptcy Filings for First Half of 2007 Up from a Year Ago
Hoosier Bankruptcy Filings Rebounding from Perceptions about 2005 Bankruptcy Law
Perceptions about the 2005 bankruptcy law making it impossible for people to file for bankruptcy seem to be changing. Nearly two weeks ago, The Bankruptcy Blog detailed how bankruptcy filings in the United States had increased by 66 percent during the first quarter of this year, and the Hoosier State is seeing similar results. A recent SouthBendTribune.com story detailed how there have been nearly 5,500 Indiana bankruptcy filings in the first half of 2007 as compared to just over 3,000 bankruptcy filings in the same time period last year.
The 2005 bankruptcy law, of course, added a debt counseling requirement to filing bankruptcy. Indiana bankruptcy attorney George Filipello said in the story that many people got the wrong impression with the new bankruptcy law that they would no longer qualify to file for bankruptcy when in fact, statistics have shown that 80-90 percent of people still qualify. Filipello added that more and more people are starting to realize this truth and then added that he expects Indiana bankruptcy filings to continue to rise.