WASHINGTON, Oct. 5 (UPI) -- U.S. bankruptcy filings hit a record 13,000 per day last week as people rushed to beat a new and more restrictive U.S. bankruptcy law, a report said.
Some 68,287 people sought bankruptcy last week, a 24 percent jump over the previous week, said California-based Lundquist Consulting. Year-to-date filings of 1.36 million are up 14 percent from last year.
This week is expected to set records as the Oct. 17 implementation of the new law approaches, when it will be more difficult and expensive for people to wipe out their debt under Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
Some Washington area law firms have stopped accepting new clients because of the deluge, the Washington Post reported Wednesday.
Hurricane Katrina victims, however, may skip credit counseling before filing under a temporary measure approved by the U.S. Trustee Program, which oversees U.S. bankruptcy courts.
"Everyone expected a steep spike in filings," Sam Gerdano, executive director of the American Bankruptcy Institute, told the newspaper.
After Oct. 17, however, court clerk offices "will be as lonely as a Maytag repairman," Gerdano said.
