US corporate bankruptcy filings are at the highest point since 2010, signaling a significant increase in bankruptcy activity for the first time since the legal finance industry emerged in this country in the wake of the 2007-2008 financial crisis.

The data show a significant spike in bankruptcy activity. In July 2023, the American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI) reported that there were 12,107 commercial bankruptcy filings through June 30—an 18% increase compared with the first six months of 2022 (ABI, “Bankruptcy Statistics Commercial Chapter 11 Filings Increased 68 Percent in the First Half of 2023”).