In 2005, more than two million Americans—six out of every 1,000 people—filed for bankruptcy. Though personal bankruptcy rates have since stabilized, bankruptcy remains an important tool for the relief of financially distressed households. In Bankrupt in America, Mary and Brad Hansen offer a vital perspective on the history of bankruptcy in America, beginning with the first lasting federal bankruptcy law enacted in 1898. Interweaving careful legal history and rigorous economic analysis, Bankrupt in America is the first work to trace how bankruptcy was transformed from an intermittently used constitutional provision, to an indispensable tool for business, to a central element of the social safety net for ordinary Americans. To do this, the authors track federal bankruptcy law, as well as related state and federal laws, examining the interaction between changes in the laws and changes in how people in each state used the bankruptcy law. In this thorough investigation, Hansen and Hansen reach novel conclusions about the causes and consequences of bankruptcy, adding nuance to the discussion of the relationship between bankruptcy rates and economic performance.

Bankruptcy in America, in stark contrast to its status in most other countries, typically signifies not a debtor's last gasp but an opportunity to catch one's breath and recoup. Why has the nation's legal system evolved to allow both corporate and individual debtors greater control over their fate than imaginable elsewhere? Masterfully probing the political dynamics behind this question, David Skeel here provides the first complete account of the remarkable journey American bankruptcy law has taken from its beginnings in 1800, when Congress lifted the country's first bankruptcy code right out of English law, to the present day. Skeel shows that the confluence of three forces that emerged over many years--an organized creditor lobby, pro-debtor ideological currents, and an increasingly powerful bankruptcy bar--explains the distinctive contours of American bankruptcy law. Their interplay, he argues in clear, inviting prose, has seen efforts to legislate bankruptcy become a compelling battle royale between bankers and lawyers--one in which the bankers recently seem to have gained the upper hand. Skeel demonstrates, for example, that a fiercely divided bankruptcy commission and the 1994 Republican takeover of Congress have yielded the recent, ideologically charged battles over consumer bankruptcy. The uniqueness of American bankruptcy has often been noted, but it has never been explained. As different as twenty-first century America is from the horse-and-buggy era origins of our bankruptcy laws, Skeel shows that the same political factors continue to shape our unique response to financial distress.

Explains how serious the federal fiscal situation is, how the crisis happened, what will happen in the near future, and what can be done about it.

Bankruptcy in America is a booming business, with hundreds of thousands of ordinary Americans filing for bankruptcy each year. Is this dramatic growth a result of mushrooming debt or does it reflect a moral decline that permits the middle class to evade their debts? As We Forgive Our Debtors addresses these questions with hard empirical data drawn from bankruptcy court filings. The authors of this multidisciplinary study describe the law and the statistics in clear, nontechnical language, combining a thorough statistical description of the social and economic position of consumer bankrupts with human portraits of the debtors and creditors whose journeys have ended in bankruptcy court. Book jacket.

"It's no secret that the U.S. national debt is in the tens of trillions. But did you know that America also has future unfunded obligations of over $118 trillion? Unfortunately, America's politicians have no plan to solve our mounting fiscal and monetary crisis. But you don't have to watch this unfold in fear of your financial future. The time for debate is over... It's time to prepare! In this revised and expanded release of Bankruptcy of Our Nation, Jerry Robinson offers you the ultimate financial survival guide. Robinson, an Austrian economist, columnist, and radio host, is featured weekly on Worldnetdaily.com, quoted by USA Today, has appeared on Fox News, and has written columns for Townhall and FinancialSense. Allow him to guide you with details of the 21 income streams you can create now and in retirement Specific ways to inflation-proof your investment portfolio using the P.A.C.E. (Precious Metals, Agriculture, Commodities, and Energy) Method How to create a diversified six-month liquid savings reserve that uses stable foreign currencies and precious metals. And the 5 Levels of Financial Freedom that Jerry has personally used to build true wealth and create complete financial security. You can survive this economic crisis, but you can't wait. It’s time to take action. Let this book show you how to become a better investor and create multiple streams of income."

"Argues that America is enjoying a government-inflated bubble, one that reality will explode with disastrous consequences for the economy and for each of us"--Dust jacket flap.