Bankruptcy court filings in Cleveland, Akron and Youngstown are significantly higher compared to the first six months of 2007. Cleveland leads the list with over 4 thousand open cases, Akron follows with about half that number and Youngstown is last with more than Eghteen hundred.
Cleveland bankruptcy attorney Julie Rabin says she's as busy as she's ever been.
Julie Rabin: "We see business people, especially business men who perhaps owned a mortgage lending company or they've been hurt by the mortgage lending crisis, and maybe people who have worked for those companies. We see people that for one reason or another have lost their jobs or have gotten a divorce."
The increase in filings is the largest since October 2005, when people rushed to courts before a more restrictive bankruptcy law passed. However, the number of cases could decrease later this year when a new bill takes effect.
Senate Bill 281 increases the value of the home and car a person may keep and still free themselves of debt.
Cleveland attorney Richard Nemeth helped spearhead the changes.
Richard Nemeth: "It will make filing for bankruptcy for those unfortunate people who have to do so easier, and it will make it a lot easier for people who have to file bankruptcy to recover and enter the economic mainstream more quickly."
The law takes effect September 25.
Kymberli Hagelberg 90.3