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(Yet Another) Chapter 13 Map

posted by Bob Lawless

Chapter 13 Percentages by DistrictThis post will have to be short on commentary -- "yay!," goes the reader -- as I am in the middle of getting ready for a conference. One of the things that preparation entailed is putting together the map to the right. To see the map well, you will need to click on it and a bring up a full-size image in a pop-up box.

The map shows the percentage of all 2013 bankruptcy cases that were chapter 13s in the 90 federal judicial districts in the fifty states and the District of Columbia. Over the years, I have put up numerous maps and tables about chapter 13 rates. This map shows the same patterns we have seen in the past in terms of both the range of variation and geographic concentrations of high chapter 13 districts. This version is different because it (a) uses 2013 data (through November) and (b) has groupings based on a cluster analysis. (A cluster analysis finds "natural" groupings of data based on the data's statistical properties.)

If anyone else has a use for the map, feel welcome. All I ask is attribution back to this post.

December 11, 2013 at 3:59 PM in Bankruptcy Data, Chapter 13

Comments

Bob, is there any academic research as to why the variation in Ch. 13 share? Why is it all clustered in the South? Thanks.

Posted by: Ben | December 11, 2013 at 04:23 PM

We published a study which was covered here: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/21/business/blacks-face-bias-in-bankruptcy-study-suggests.html?pagewanted=all, which does not get at the regional variation per se but does offer some insights on chapter 13 choice.

Chapter 13 started in Birmingham, Alabama, but that does not necessarily explain the persistence of the pattern today or even why it might have started in that place.

Posted by: Bob Lawless | December 11, 2013 at 07:12 PM

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  • As a public service, the University of Illinois College of Law operates Bankr-L, an e-mail list on which bankruptcy professionals can exchange information. Bankr-L is administered by one of the Credit Slips bloggers, Professor Robert M. Lawless of the University of Illinois. Although Bankr-L is a free service, membership is limited only to persons with a professional connection to the bankruptcy field (e.g., lawyer, accountant, academic, judge). To request a subscription on Bankr-L, click here to visit the page for the list and then click on the link for "Subscribe." After completing the information there, please also send an e-mail to Professor Lawless ([email protected]) with a short description of your professional connection to bankruptcy. A link to a URL with a professional bio or other identifying information would be great.

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