Colorado companies and individuals have filed more than three times as many bankruptcy petitions this year as in the first two months of 2006.
The increase reflects growing economic difficulties as well as more awareness from filers and their attorneys on 2005 changes in bankruptcy laws, said Brad Bolton, clerk of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Denver.
In January and February, 2,493 petitions were filed in Colorado, up 45 percent from 1,724 for the same period last year and an increase of 249 percent from the 714 filings in the first two months of 2006.
“Our workload is definitely picking up,” Bolton said of the surge in filings this year.
Bankruptcy petitions rose to record levels in October 2005, just before new federal regulations went into effect that made it more difficult for filers to escape debts in Chapter 7 restructurings by forcing them into Chapter 13, where most debts must be paid off.
Filings then dropped sharply in 2006 before picking up again in 2007 as the weakening economy and credit crisis afflicted households and corporations.
Bolton said the increase is partly attributable to filers and their attorneys better understanding who is still eligible to file after the change in bankruptcy laws.
Nationally, bankruptcy petitions in February rose to the highest monthly level since the October 2005 law change, according to Jupiter eSources’ Automated Access to Court Electronic Records.
Steve Raabe: 303-954-1948 or sraabe@denverpost.com
