What should come as little surprise, the number of individuals filing for bankruptcy is skyrocketing. This is even though the new bankruptcy laws that went into effect 3 years ago made it tougher to file for bankruptcy.

Bankruptcy attorneys is some states are now working 7 days a week to try and keep up with the demand. The numbers are sobering.

1.2 million debtors filed for bankruptcy in the past 12 months according to federal court records. In March of this year, nearly 131,000 people filed papers asking for bankruptcy protection. That’s close to a 50% increase from a year ago.

Consider the fact that in all of 2006, there were only 600,000 total bankruptcies filed.

Breaking it down further, it means that currently, 4 people out of 1,000 are filing today.

Experts are saying that the numbers are only going to increase throughout the rest of this year and into 2010 as more and more people lose their jobs.