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Federal judicial district · FY2024 · AOUSC

District of the District of Columbia

According to AOUSC Judicial Caseload Statistics, every Chapter 7, 11, 12, and 13 bankruptcy petition recorded in the District of the District of Columbia is covered here.

439
Total filings FY2024
Lower-volume district
266
Chapter 7
Near national share
102
Chapter 13
Below national share
94
Business
Above national share

Data updated September 2026

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The bottom line

FY2024 closed with 439 filings in the District of the District of Columbia, 61% Chapter 7, up 26.1% on FY2023.

61%
Chapter 7 (liquidation)
23%
Chapter 13 (repayment)
21.4%
business filings
+26.1%
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 439 filings, orthogonal to the chapter mix farther down.

District of the District of Columbia: filing volume vs. every federal judicial district

FY2024 total bankruptcy filings, AOUSC Judicial Caseload Statistics

439 2nd percentile higher than 2% of 89 federal judicial districts

0–1,500: 17 federal judicial districts (19%). This entry sits in this band. 1,500–3,000: 14 federal judicial districts (16%). Above this entry. 3,000–4,500: 13 federal judicial districts (15%). Above this entry. 4,500–6,000: 14 federal judicial districts (16%). Above this entry. 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. District of Columbia 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

Light-volume filing history (#87 of 89)

2004006008001,000 FY15FY16FY17FY18FY19FY20FY21FY22FY23FY24 439
Total bankruptcy filings in the District of the District of Columbia by fiscal year. Source: AOUSC Judicial Caseload Statistics.
Year Total Ch. 7 Ch. 11 Ch. 12 Ch. 13
FY2024 439 266 70 1 102
FY2023 348 228 50 0 70
FY2022 241 182 17 0 42
FY2021 349 291 23 0 35
FY2020 618 446 28 0 143
FY2019 832 521 36 0 275
FY2018 839 534 28 0 277
FY2017 738 490 23 0 225
FY2016 697 538 27 0 132
FY2015 723 573 19 0 131

Upper-band YoY trend & chapter mix

61%

Chapter 7 share

345

Consumer filings

  • Chapter 7 266 (61%)
  • Chapter 13 102 (23%)
  • Chapter 11 70 (16%)
  • Chapter 12 1 (0%)

FY2024 filings by chapter: 439 total across Chapters 7, 11, 12, and 13.

Filings increased 26.1% from FY2023 to FY2024 in the District of the District of Columbia.

Unemployment & filings, side by side

With District of Columbia unemployment essentially unchanged (5.7% to 5.7%), the District of the District of Columbia's 58.2% filing decline over FY2019-FY2023 points to a driver other than the labor market.

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

District of the District of Columbia in the light-volume third

FY2024 filings rose 26.1% vs FY2023 — a sharp year-over-year move for District of the District of Columbia.

Between FY2015 and FY2024, the District of the District of Columbia's filing count fell 39.3%, 2.0 points above the national decline of 41.3%.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many bankruptcy cases were filed in the District of the District of Columbia in FY2024?

In FY2024, 439 bankruptcy cases were filed in the District of the District of Columbia, ranking it 87 out of 89 federal judicial districts by volume.

What share of filings in this district are business cases?

Of the District of the District of Columbia's FY2024 filings, 94 were business cases and 345 were non-business (consumer) cases.

What to do with this

District of the District of Columbia's own numbers, then where to compare them.

  • This district ranks #87 of 89 nationally by FY2024 filing volume - see how every federal district stacks up. National rankings
  • 61% 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
  • District of the District of Columbia is one federal district in District of Columbia - see the full state rollup across every district. District of Columbia 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. District of the District of Columbia FY2024 profile (#87 of 89 volume · #57 of 89 Ch.13 share · upper-band yoy rebound) retrieved and formatted by PlainBankruptcy.