States ›California › Northern District of California

Federal judicial district · FY2024 · AOUSC

Northern District of California

According to AOUSC Judicial Caseload Statistics, federal bankruptcy filing counts for the Northern District of California cover Chapters 7, 11, 12, and 13.

5,692
Total filings FY2024
Mid-volume district
3,434
Chapter 7
Near national share
2,017
Chapter 13
Near national share
585
Business
Above national share

Data updated September 2026

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The bottom line

The Northern District of California recorded 5,692 bankruptcy filings in FY2024, 60% of them Chapter 7 liquidations - up 23.7% from FY2023.

60%
Chapter 7 (liquidation)
35%
Chapter 13 (repayment)
10.3%
business filings
+23.7%
vs FY2023

Counted by federal fiscal year (Oct–Sep); every case here is filed in federal, not state, court. Not legal advice.

Business-heavy case split, FY2024

AOUSC case-type split of the same 5,692 filings, orthogonal to the chapter mix farther down.

Northern District of California: filing volume vs. every federal judicial district

FY2024 total bankruptcy filings, AOUSC Judicial Caseload Statistics

5,692 Top 38% higher than 62% of 89 federal judicial districts

0–1,500: 17 federal judicial districts (19%). Below this entry. 1,500–3,000: 14 federal judicial districts (16%). Below this entry. 3,000–4,500: 13 federal judicial districts (15%). Below this entry. 4,500–6,000: 14 federal judicial districts (16%). This entry sits in this band. 6,000–7,500: 10 federal judicial districts (11%). Above this entry. 7,500–9,000: 4 federal judicial districts (4%). Above this entry. 9,000–10,500: 5 federal judicial districts (6%). Above this entry. 10,500–12,000: 4 federal judicial districts (4%). Above this entry. 12,000–13,500: 2 federal judicial districts (2%). Above this entry. 13,500–15,000: 1 federal judicial districts (1%). Above this entry. 15,000–16,500: 5 federal judicial districts (6%). Above this entry. Northern California 0 16,500 every federal judicial district, bucketed by value

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more federal judicial districts. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source AOUSC Judicial Caseload Statistics · FY2024

Filing history, FY series

2,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,000 FY15FY16FY17FY18FY19FY20FY21FY22FY23FY24 5,692
Total bankruptcy filings in the Northern District of California by fiscal year. Source: AOUSC Judicial Caseload Statistics.
Year Total Ch. 7 Ch. 11 Ch. 12 Ch. 13
FY2024 5,692 3,434 240 1 2,017
FY2023 4,600 2,856 134 2 1,606
FY2022 3,893 2,420 147 1 1,325
FY2021 4,934 3,439 173 2 1,317
FY2020 6,586 4,307 150 1 2,127
FY2019 8,234 4,725 141 6 3,359
FY2018 8,684 4,712 150 3 3,819
FY2017 9,394 4,987 185 5 4,213
FY2016 10,607 5,541 185 2 4,879
FY2015 11,892 6,668 190 1 5,033

Upper-band YoY trend & chapter mix

60%

Chapter 7 share

5,107

Consumer filings

  • Chapter 7 3,434 (60%)
  • Chapter 13 2,017 (35%)
  • Chapter 11 240 (4%)
  • Chapter 12 1 (0%)

Chapter breakdown of the 5,692 FY2024 filings in the Northern District of California.

Year-over-year, the Northern District of California saw filings climb 23.7% between FY2023 and FY2024.

Unemployment & filings, side by side

California's unemployment rate barely moved (5.1% in 2019 to 5.1% in 2023), while filings in the Northern District of California fell 44.1% over the comparable span, FY2019-FY2023 — a mover unemployment alone does not explain.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics state unemployment rate, annual average; AOUSC filing counts by fiscal year. A comparison, not a claim of cause.

Upper-band YoY rebound

Northern District of California's upper-band YoY move

FY2024 filings rose 23.7% vs FY2023 — a sharp year-over-year move for Northern District of California.

The Northern District of California's decade trend, FY2015-FY2024: filings fell 52.1%, 10.8 points below the national decline of 41.3%.

Frequently Asked Questions

What was the FY2024 bankruptcy filing count for the Northern District of California?

In FY2024, 5,692 bankruptcy cases were filed in the Northern District of California, ranking it 34 out of 89 federal judicial districts by volume.

What is the difference between business and non-business bankruptcy filings?

In FY2024, 585 of the Northern District of California's filings were business cases, versus 5,107 non-business (consumer) filings.

Nationwide districts with similar filing profiles

Two AOUSC peer sets for the Northern District of California in FY2024, both outside California so the neighborhoods are not state containment (same-state courts stay in Other districts below). Volume peers are nearest other-state districts by total filings; Chapter 13 peers are nearest by Ch.13 share of Chapter 7 plus 13 filings.

Similar filing volume

Nearest other-state districts by FY2024 total filings (5,692 here).

Eastern Missouri 5,647 Western Louisiana 5,607 Middle Alabama 5,840 Western Kentucky 5,844

Similar Chapter 13 share

Nearest other-state districts by Chapter 13 share of Chapter 7 plus 13 filings.

Massachusetts 37% Ch.13 Eastern Kentucky 38% Ch.13 Utah 38% Ch.13 Maryland 38% Ch.13

What to do with this

Northern District of California's own numbers, then where to compare them.

  • This district ranks #34 of 89 nationally by FY2024 filing volume - see how every federal district stacks up. National rankings
  • 60% of FY2024 filings here were Chapter 7 liquidations, not Chapter 13 repayment plans - the guide breaks down what separates the two. Chapter 7 vs Chapter 13
  • Northern District of California is one federal district in California - see the full state rollup across every district. California overview

Figures are Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (AOUSC) Judicial Caseload Statistics FY2024 filings - see the methodology page for how districts and chapters are defined.

Data sourced from Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (AOUSC) Judicial Caseload Statistics. See our methodology for details. Northern District of California FY2024 profile (#34 of 89 volume · #43 of 89 Ch.13 share · upper-band yoy rebound) retrieved and formatted by PlainBankruptcy.