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Federal judicial district · FY2024 · AOUSC

Eastern District of Pennsylvania

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

4,557
Total filings FY2024
Mid-volume district
2,068
Chapter 7
Below national share
2,419
Chapter 13
Above national share
217
Business
Near national share

Data updated September 2026

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The bottom line

4,557 bankruptcy cases moved through the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in FY2024, with Chapter 7 liquidations making up 45% of the total, a rise of 18.3% versus FY2023.

45%
Chapter 7 (liquidation)
53%
Chapter 13 (repayment)
4.8%
business filings
+18.3%
vs FY2023

Filed in federal, not state, court; counted by fiscal year (Oct–Sep). Not legal advice.

Consumer vs business filings, FY2024

AOUSC case-type split of the same 4,557 filings, orthogonal to the chapter mix farther down.

Eastern District of Pennsylvania: filing volume vs. every federal judicial district

FY2024 total bankruptcy filings, AOUSC Judicial Caseload Statistics

4,557 Top 49% higher than 51% 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. Eastern Pennsylvania 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 on a Chapter 13-heavy book

2,0004,0006,0008,00010,000 FY15FY16FY17FY18FY19FY20FY21FY22FY23FY24 4,557
Total bankruptcy filings in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania by fiscal year. Source: AOUSC Judicial Caseload Statistics.
Year Total Ch. 7 Ch. 11 Ch. 12 Ch. 13
FY2024 4,557 2,068 70 0 2,419
FY2023 3,851 1,730 34 0 2,086
FY2022 3,438 1,635 39 0 1,764
FY2021 3,741 2,333 43 1 1,363
FY2020 5,936 3,347 56 2 2,531
FY2019 8,274 3,985 65 4 4,219
FY2018 8,642 4,256 75 2 4,309
FY2017 8,864 4,574 93 1 4,196
FY2016 9,341 4,912 85 2 4,342
FY2015 9,583 5,326 104 2 4,151

Upper-band YoY trend & chapter mix

45%

Chapter 7 share

4,340

Consumer filings

  • Chapter 7 2,068 (45%)
  • Chapter 13 2,419 (53%)
  • Chapter 11 70 (2%)

How the 4,557 FY2024 filings split across the four bankruptcy chapters.

Year-over-year, the Eastern District of Pennsylvania saw filings climb 18.3% between FY2023 and FY2024.

Unemployment & filings, side by side

With Pennsylvania unemployment essentially unchanged (3.8% to 3.8%), the Eastern District of Pennsylvania's 53.5% 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

Eastern District of Pennsylvania's Chapter 13-heavy mix

FY2024 filings rose 18.3% vs FY2023 — a sharp year-over-year move for Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

The Eastern District of Pennsylvania's decade trend, FY2015-FY2024: filings fell 52.4%, 11.1 points below the national decline of 41.3%.

Frequently Asked Questions

What was the FY2024 bankruptcy filing count for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania?

In FY2024, 4,557 bankruptcy cases were filed in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, ranking it 44 out of 89 federal judicial districts by volume.

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

In FY2024, 217 of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania's filings were business cases, versus 4,340 non-business (consumer) filings.

Nationwide peers on Chapter 13 share

Two AOUSC peer sets for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in FY2024, both outside Pennsylvania 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 (4,557 here).

Massachusetts 4,534 South Carolina 4,638 Southern New York 4,654 Eastern North Carolina 4,379

Similar Chapter 13 share

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

Middle Louisiana 55% Ch.13 Middle North Carolina 55% Ch.13 Western Kentucky 56% Ch.13 Western North Carolina 57% Ch.13

What to do with this

Eastern District of Pennsylvania's own numbers, then where to compare them.

  • This district ranks #44 of 89 nationally by FY2024 filing volume - see how every federal district stacks up. National rankings
  • 45% 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
  • Eastern District of Pennsylvania is one federal district in Pennsylvania - see the full state rollup across every district. Pennsylvania 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. Eastern District of Pennsylvania FY2024 profile (#44 of 89 volume · #17 of 89 Ch.13 share · upper-band yoy rebound) retrieved and formatted by PlainBankruptcy.