Nick Denton recently filed for bankruptcy as a suit against Gawker, the famous publication company he owned, was swamped by a lawsuit won by Hulk Hogan. The bankruptcy levels vary widely state to state, as research shows.

Dictionary.com defines bankruptcy as:

… a person who upon his or her own petition or that of his or her creditors is adjudged insolvent by a court and whose property is administered for and divided among his or her creditors under a bankruptcy law.

The level per 100,000 people varied widely by state, based on data from U.S. counts as recorded by Statista for the 12-month period that ended June 2015. The national rate for the period was 274 per 100,000.

The list of the top 10:

1. Tennessee, 565
2. Alabama, 518
3. Georgia, 501
4. Illinois, 457
5. Utah, 433
6. Indiana, 423
7. District of Columbia, 405
8. Mississippi, 364
9. Kentucky, 357
10. Alaska and Nevada (tie), 351

The states with the lowest rates:

1. Arkansas, 57
2. Delaware, 81
3. North Dakota, 81
4. Vermont, 105
5. Hawaii, 116
6. Texas, 126
7. Montana, 131
8. South Dakota, 135
9. Massachusetts, 141
10. South Carolina, 145

The levels appear to be highest in southern states, where people tend to have low median income.

Methodology: These lists show the personal bankruptcy rate (per 100,000 inhabitants) in the United States in 2015 by state. Data is for 12 months through June 30, 2015. The national rate does not include bankruptcies or population in U.S. territories. Data includes all non-business bankruptcies, and the rate was calculated using U.S. Census Bureau population data.

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