How fast does a federal bankruptcy case get dismissed? 1,268 cases across 220,037 in our corpus were dismissed within 30 days of filing — a population that captures procedural failures (missing documents, fee defaults, ineligibility) rather than substantive litigation.
| Chapter | Quick dismissals | Total dismissed | % of dismissals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ch.7 | 334 | 1,850 | 18.1% |
| Ch.11 | 40 | 852 | 4.7% |
| Ch.13 | 877 | 35,305 | 2.5% |
| Adversary Proceeding | 17 | 1,738 | 1.0% |
| District | ≤30 day dismissals | Total dismissed | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| cacbk | 108 | 561 | 19.25% |
| flsbk | 831 | 11,826 | 7.03% |
| njbk | 18 | 321 | 5.61% |
| flnbk | 5 | 136 | 3.68% |
| moebk | 18 | 562 | 3.20% |
| flmbk | 35 | 1,280 | 2.73% |
| tnwbk | 11 | 705 | 1.56% |
| mowbk | 101 | 7,778 | 1.30% |
| nvbk | 1 | 108 | 0.93% |
| txsbk | 95 | 11,241 | 0.85% |
Source: 220,037 federal bankruptcy cases from PACER (2008-2026). Filtered for cases where (a) disposition contains "Dismissed" and (b) date_dismissed - date_filed is between 0 and 30/60/90 days. Excludes cases where either date field is null.
Why this matters. A case dismissed within 30 days rarely reflects substantive failure of the bankruptcy — it reflects an access barrier (filing-fee non-payment, missing schedules, ineligibility under ยง 109). Districts with persistently high quick-dismissal rates may have stricter local-rule enforcement, higher pro-se filing volume, or other systemic frictions worth examining.