Nevada leads nation in bankruptcies despite 15 percent decline

Nevada continues to lead the nation in bankruptcy filings per capita, according to a study released today by the Columbia University School of Law in New York City.

In April the state had 4,123 filings per 1 million adults, nearly twice the national average of 2,063 filings. The number of filings in Nevada last month was 7,966.

The good news is the state's filing rate dropped 15 percent compared to the same month in 2010, Columbia Law professor Ronald Mann said.

“The disparity underscores how out of line filings in Nevada were last year, when they were more than 50 percent higher than those in any other state for much of the year,” Mann said.

Bankruptcy filings nationwide dropped 7 percent in April, continuing a downward trend that began at the start of the year, Mann found.

The bankruptcy total nationwide last month was 135,000, down from 145,000 in March, and marked the fourth consecutive month that filings have decreased compared to 2010. Mann compiled the figures for the National Bankruptcy Research Center.

“These are encouraging numbers given that, from 2007 to 2010, every month’s filings were higher than the filings for the same month in the previous year,” Mann said.

The other states with the highest filing rates per 1 million residents in April were Georgia (3,412), Utah (3,291), Tennessee (3,272), and California (3,017). The lowest rate was in Alaska (690).

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