bankruptcy

bank·rupt·cy

noun \ˈbaŋk-(ˌ)rəp(t)-sē\

plural bank·rupt·cies

Definition of BANKRUPTCY

1

: the quality or state of being bankrupt

2

: utter failure or impoverishment

Examples of BANKRUPTCY

1. The company is facing bankruptcy.
2. The company was forced into bankruptcy.
3. The number of bankruptcies was especially high last year.
4. Critics view the decision as an example of moral bankruptcy on the part of the administration.

First Known Use of BANKRUPTCY

1700

Related to BANKRUPTCY

Synonyms

insolvency, failure, ruin

Antonyms

solvency

Related Words

Chapter 11

Other Legal Terms

actionable, alienable, carceral, chattel, complicity, decedent, larceny, malfeasance, modus operandi

bankruptcy

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

Status of a debtor who has been declared by judicial process to be unable to pay his or her debts. It also refers to the legal process involved: the administration of an insolvent debtor's property by the court for the benefit of the debtor's creditors. Filing by a debtor is called voluntary bankruptcy; involuntary bankruptcy is declared by the court upon petition by a creditor. The U.S. Bankruptcy Code makes four types of relief available to bankrupt individuals or corporations: liquidation (under Chapter 7), reorganization (Chapter 11), debt adjustment for a family farmer (Chapter 12), and debt adjustment for an individual with a regular income (Chapter 13). Municipalities may file under Chapter 9. Generally, not all debts are paid in a bankruptcy. The court determines which debts are to be repaid, and the debtor is typically granted a discharge of the rest. See also insolvency.