A good summary of the impact stemming from the Bankruptcy Reform Act so far, in the Orlando Sentinel. Filings nationwide for the first quarter were up 8% over the previous quarter, which is particularly significant since a) filings were significantly down in the first two months of the year, so the surge in filings shown above occurred in only one month, March; and b) the measure wasn't signed by President Bush until mid-April, well after the end of the first quarter.

The increase in May has been by far the most telling number. Traditionally, March and April tend to busy months for bankruptcy attorneys, as debtors begin to take account of their finances after the Christmas season, but then work slackens off as we move toward the middle of the year. This year, the preliminary figures indicate that May was even busier than March or April, which is almost unheard of in bankruptcy court. Unless the rate of filings begins to decline as we enter the summer, we could be in for an explosive situation come September and October, before the measure takes effect.