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Federal judicial district · FY2024 · AOUSC

Eastern District of Wisconsin

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

6,832
Total filings FY2024
High-volume district
4,132
Chapter 7
Near national share
2,678
Chapter 13
Near national share
112
Business
Below national share

Data updated September 2026

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The bottom line

The Eastern District of Wisconsin recorded 6,832 bankruptcy filings in FY2024, 60% of them Chapter 7 liquidations - up 14.7% from FY2023.

60%
Chapter 7 (liquidation)
39%
Chapter 13 (repayment)
1.6%
business filings
+14.7%
vs FY2023

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

Consumer-dominated case split, FY2024

AOUSC case-type split of the same 6,832 filings, orthogonal to the chapter mix farther down.

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

FY2024 total bankruptcy filings, AOUSC Judicial Caseload Statistics

6,832 Top 26% higher than 74% 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%). Below this entry. 6,000–7,500: 10 federal judicial districts (11%). This entry sits in this band. 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 Wisconsin 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

Heavy-volume filing history (#23 of 89)

4,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,00016,000 FY15FY16FY17FY18FY19FY20FY21FY22FY23FY24 6,832
Total bankruptcy filings in the Eastern District of Wisconsin by fiscal year. Source: AOUSC Judicial Caseload Statistics.
Year Total Ch. 7 Ch. 11 Ch. 12 Ch. 13
FY2024 6,832 4,132 18 2 2,678
FY2023 5,956 3,441 29 2 2,484
FY2022 5,724 3,475 11 6 2,232
FY2021 7,073 5,023 14 8 2,028
FY2020 9,307 6,324 18 35 2,930
FY2019 12,238 8,025 18 11 4,184
FY2018 12,198 8,126 5 17 4,050
FY2017 12,751 8,361 14 15 4,361
FY2016 12,816 8,471 26 16 4,303
FY2015 14,322 10,088 21 10 4,203

Upper-band YoY trend & chapter mix

60%

Chapter 7 share

6,720

Consumer filings

  • Chapter 7 4,132 (60%)
  • Chapter 13 2,678 (39%)
  • Chapter 11 18 (0%)
  • Chapter 12 2 (0%)

Chapter breakdown of the 6,832 FY2024 filings in the Eastern District of Wisconsin.

From FY2023 to FY2024, the Eastern District of Wisconsin's filing volume went up 14.7%.

Unemployment & filings, side by side

With Wisconsin unemployment essentially unchanged (3.1% to 3.1%), the Eastern District of Wisconsin's 51.3% 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.

Heavy-third district caseload

Eastern District of Wisconsin in the heavy-volume third

6,832 FY2024 filings put Eastern District of Wisconsin in the heaviest third of federal districts.

Over FY2015–FY2024, filings in the Eastern District of Wisconsin fell 52.3%, 11.0 points below the national decline of 41.3% over the same span.

Frequently Asked Questions

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

Eastern District of Wisconsin recorded 6,832 bankruptcy filings in FY2024, placing it 23th among the nation's 89 federal districts.

How many business vs. non-business bankruptcy filings were there?

In FY2024, 112 of the Eastern District of Wisconsin's filings were business cases, versus 6,720 non-business (consumer) filings.

Nationwide peers of a heavy-volume district

Two AOUSC peer sets for this heavy-volume Eastern District of Wisconsin book in FY2024, both outside Wisconsin (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 (6,832 here).

Eastern Tennessee 6,807 Utah 6,657 Western Texas 6,627 Oregon 6,601

Similar Chapter 13 share

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

Eastern New York 40% Ch.13 Western Virginia 40% Ch.13 New Jersey 41% Ch.13 Maryland 38% Ch.13

What to do with this

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

  • This district ranks #23 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
  • Eastern District of Wisconsin is one federal district in Wisconsin - see the full state rollup across every district. Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin FY2024 profile (#23 of 89 volume · #38 of 89 Ch.13 share · heavy-third district caseload) retrieved and formatted by PlainBankruptcy.