ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The American Bankruptcy Institute reported
total bankruptcy filings in the United States for the month of August increased
7 percent compared to July, according to data provided by Epiq Systems.

Officials tabulated August bankruptcy filings totaled
104,336, up from the 97,104 filings registered in July. They indicated the
99,417 total noncommercial filings for August represented a 7-percent uptick
from the July noncommercial filing total of 92,562.

ABI determined total commercial filings for August were
4,919, representing an 8-percent increase from the 4,542 filings in July.
Commercial Chapter 11 filings also increased in August, as the 648 filings
represented an 8-percent rise above the 600 filings in July.

"Financially distressed consumers and businesses will
continue to turn to bankruptcy for relief," ABI executive director Samuel Gerdano
acknowledged.

"While the August totals rose slightly over last month, we
remain on course for the lowest total new bankruptcies since before the
financial crisis in 2008," Gerdano projected.

In other elements of the latest report, the 104,336 total
bankruptcy filings in August represented a 14-percent decrease from the 120,905
filings registered in August of last year. The 4,919 commercial filings for
August represented a 24-percent decrease from the 6,434 filings during the same
period a year ago.

Officials also noted the August commercial Chapter 11 filing
total of 648 represented a 9-percent drop from the 710 cases posted in the same
month a year ago. They went on to mention the 99,417 total noncommercial
filings for August represented a 13-percent decrease from last August's noncommercial
filing total of 114,471.

ABI pinpointed the average nationwide per capita
bankruptcy-filing rate of 4.04 (total filings per 1,000 per population) for the
first eight calendar months of 2012 remained unchanged from the first seven
months of the year.

Average total filings per day in August were 3,366, a 14-percent
dip from the 3,900 total daily filings in August of last year.

Looking at the latest information by geography, ABI
discovered states with the highest per capita filing rate (total filings per
1,000 population) through the first eight months of the year were:

1. Tennessee (7.03)

2. Nevada (6.97)

3. Georgia (6.58)

4. Utah (6.07)

5. Alabama (5.69)

ABI reiterated that it partners with Epiq Systems in order
to provide the most current bankruptcy filing data for analysts, researchers
and members of the news media.

Epiq Systems is a provider of managed technology for the
global legal profession.