Market data
Bankruptcy in Montana: market data
What public records say about the market for bankruptcy in Montana: how much demand the courts and agencies count, how many law offices serve it, how many people need help in Spanish, and the ad rules that apply. Every number links to the record it comes from.
Demand: what courts and agencies count
Counts of filings, crashes, complaints and enforcement in the records each agency keeps. A count shows where problems were recorded, not how many people will hire a lawyer.
| Measure | Value | Period | Place | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Business bankruptcy cases | 60 cases, 12 months | 12 months ending 2026-09-30 | Montana state | bankruptcy v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23739952 record bankruptcy-30 · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Chapter 13 bankruptcy cases | 157 cases, 12 months | 12 months ending 2026-09-30 | Montana state | bankruptcy v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23739952 record bankruptcy-30 · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Chapter 7 bankruptcy cases | 778 cases, 12 months | 12 months ending 2026-09-30 | Montana state | bankruptcy v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23739952 record bankruptcy-30 · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Bankruptcy cases filed | 958 cases, 12 months | 12 months ending 2026-09-30 | Montana state | bankruptcy v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23739952 record bankruptcy-30 · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
| CFPB debt or credit management complaints | 12 complaints, 12 months | 12 months from 2025-10-01 | Montana state | consumer-complaints v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23733731 record cfpb-mt-debt-management · status P · checked 2026-10-27 |
| Business bankruptcy cases | 61 cases, 12 months | 12 months ending 2026-09-30 | District of Montana federal district | bankruptcy v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23739952 record bankruptcy-mt · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Chapter 13 bankruptcy cases | 158 cases, 12 months | 12 months ending 2026-09-30 | District of Montana federal district | bankruptcy v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23739952 record bankruptcy-mt · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Chapter 7 bankruptcy cases | 776 cases, 12 months | 12 months ending 2026-09-30 | District of Montana federal district | bankruptcy v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23739952 record bankruptcy-mt · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Bankruptcy cases filed | 958 cases, 12 months | 12 months ending 2026-09-30 | District of Montana federal district | bankruptcy v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23739952 record bankruptcy-mt · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
Rising or falling
The change between the last two periods each source publishes. No threshold and no smoothing.
| Measure | Before | Latest | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Business bankruptcy cases Montana · record bankruptcy-30 | 53 2026-06-30 | 60 2026-09-30 | rising (+13.2%) |
| Chapter 13 bankruptcy cases Montana · record bankruptcy-30 | 151 2026-06-30 | 157 2026-09-30 | rising (+4%) |
| Chapter 7 bankruptcy cases Montana · record bankruptcy-30 | 760 2026-06-30 | 778 2026-09-30 | rising (+2.4%) |
| Bankruptcy cases filed Montana · record bankruptcy-30 | 938 2026-06-30 | 958 2026-09-30 | rising (+2.1%) |
| CFPB debt or credit management complaints Montana · record cfpb-mt-debt-management | 5 prior 12 months | 12 12 months from 2025-10-01 | rising (+140%) |
Lawyer supply
How many law offices and lawyers the federal statistics count here.
| Measure | Value | Period | Place | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New lawyers admitted | 233 lawyers a year | 2025 | Montana state | bar-pipeline v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23721443 record mt-bar-pipeline · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Counties under 1 law office per 10,000 residents | 10 counties | 2026-Q1 | Montana state | deserts v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23721430 record deserts-30 · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Counties with no law office | 10 counties | 2026-Q1 | Montana state | deserts v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23721430 record deserts-30 · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Residents living in those low-office counties | 1.6 percent of residents | 2026-Q1 | Montana state | deserts v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23721430 record deserts-30 · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Employer law firms | 655 firms | 2022 | Montana state | law-firm-economy v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23739997 record lfe-mt-all · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Receipts of employer law firms | 537,324,000 US dollars | 2022 | Montana state | law-firm-economy v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23739997 record lfe-mt-all · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Law offices per 10,000 residents | 7.43 per 10,000 residents | 2026-Q1 | Montana state | law-offices v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23721415 record law-offices-30 · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Self-employed lawyers (nonemployer firms) | 861 firms | latest Nonemployer Statistics year | Montana state | law-offices v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23721415 record law-offices-30 · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Private law offices | 851 establishments | 2026-Q1 | Montana state | law-offices v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23721415 record law-offices-30 · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Lawyers employed (wage-earning, BLS OEWS) | 2,380 jobs | May 2025 | Montana state | lawyer-wages v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23734840 record lawyer-wages:MT:231011:2025 · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Median annual wage of employed lawyers | 103,720 US dollars a year | May 2025 | Montana state | lawyer-wages v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23734840 record lawyer-wages:MT:231011:2025 · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
Counties with the most demand per law office
Of the 25 counties in Montana with the most bankruptcy cases filed, the ten with the most per private law office. Both counts are shown with their records.
| County | Demand | Law offices | Per office |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rosebud County, MT | 9 record bankruptcy-30087 | 1 record law-offices-30087 | 9 |
| Powell County, MT | 5 record bankruptcy-30077 | 1 record law-offices-30077 | 5 |
| Chouteau County, MT | 6 record bankruptcy-30015 | 2 record law-offices-30015 | 3 |
| Lincoln County, MT | 20 record bankruptcy-30053 | 7 record law-offices-30053 | 2.86 |
| Fergus County, MT | 8 record bankruptcy-30027 | 3 record law-offices-30027 | 2.67 |
| Jefferson County, MT | 13 record bankruptcy-30043 | 5 record law-offices-30043 | 2.6 |
| Silver Bow County, MT | 38 record bankruptcy-30093 | 15 record law-offices-30093 | 2.53 |
| Sanders County, MT | 10 record bankruptcy-30089 | 4 record law-offices-30089 | 2.5 |
| Ravalli County, MT | 43 record bankruptcy-30081 | 18 record law-offices-30081 | 2.39 |
| Carbon County, MT | 9 record bankruptcy-30009 | 4 record law-offices-30009 | 2.25 |
Bankruptcy cases filed (bankruptcy v1.0.0, 12 months ending 2026-09-30) ÷ Private law offices (law-offices v1.0.0, 2026-Q1). ratio = bankruptcy.filings / law-offices.qcew_estabs, rounded to 2 decimals; ranked highest first, among the 25 units with the most demand. Units with zero supply are listed apart (ratio undefined); units without a published value are listed as missing.
Spanish-language demand
People who speak Spanish and speak English less than very well, and the lawyers who speak Spanish, from the Census Bureau survey (with margins of error).
| Measure | Value | Period | Place | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spanish speakers with limited English (ACS) | 4,082 ±694 people age 5+ | 2020-2024 | Montana state | language v1.1.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23656758 record language:state:MT:spanish-lep · status P · checked 2026-10-25 |
| Spanish speakers with limited English | 4,082 ±607 people age 5+ | 2020-2024 | Montana state | legal-need v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23741886 record legal-need-mt · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
Ad rules that apply
The rules a law firm's ads in Montana have to meet, summarized from the official texts. The full rules, with quotes, are on the state page.
| Topic | Status | What it says |
|---|---|---|
| Ad filing or review | P primary source | No filing or pre-approval is required. Rule 7.2(a) lets a lawyer communicate information about services through any media. Rules 7.1 to 7.5 have no filing clause (7.4 is eliminated). official source · rules v1.4.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23750572 · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Required content | P primary source | Every ad under Rule 7.2 must include the name and contact information of at least one lawyer or law firm responsible for its content (7.2(d)). official source · rules v1.4.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23750572 · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Waiting periods for contact | P primary source | The advertising rules (7.1 to 7.5) set no waiting period before contacting someone after an accident. Rule 7.3(b) bars solicitation after the person says no, where it involves coercion, duress or harassment, or where the person's physical, emotional or mental… official source · rules v1.4.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23750572 · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Claims and results | P primary source | No ad may be false or misleading (7.1). A communication is misleading if it is likely to create an unjustified expectation about results (7.1(b)). official source · rules v1.4.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23750572 · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Paying for referrals | P primary source | A lawyer may not compensate, give or promise anything of value for a recommendation, except to pay reasonable ad costs, the usual charges of a legal service plan or a not-for-profit lawyer referral service, the price of a law practice (Rule 1.19), under a… official source · rules v1.4.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23750572 · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Call recording | P primary source | Recording a conversation with a hidden device without the knowledge of all parties is an offense. Exceptions include persons given warning of the recording and certain public officials and meetings. official source · rules v1.4.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23750572 · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Texting | P primary source | Telephone solicitations to residential subscribers on the state no-call list are barred (30-14-1602). A subscriber who receives more than one in 12 months may sue to enjoin it and recover the greater of actual loss or $5,000 per knowing violation. official source · rules v1.4.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23750572 · checked 2026-10-28 |
| Ad filing or review | P primary source | Montana: no filing or review of lawyer ads is required. official source · filing v1.2.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23721409 · checked 2026-10-25 |
| Paying for referrals | P primary source | Lawyers in different firms may split a fee if the split matches the work each does, or if each lawyer takes joint responsibility for the representation, and the total fee is reasonable. official source · referral v1.1.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23747113 · checked 2026-10-27 |
Prices and pay (national)
| Measure | Value | Period | Place | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jobs in legal services (seasonally adjusted) | 1,249 thousand jobs | 2026-09 | United States United States | legal-prices v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23734854 record legal-prices:CES6054110001:2026-09 · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
| CPI-U: legal services | 230 index | 2026-09 | United States United States | legal-prices v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23734854 record legal-prices:CUUR0000SEGC01:2026-09 · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
| PPI: offices of lawyers | 338 index | 2026-09 | United States United States | legal-prices v1.0.0 doi:10.5281/zenodo.23734854 record legal-prices:PCU541110541110:2026-09 · status P · checked 2026-10-28 |
Download and cite
The rows behind this page, with every dataset, version, DOI, record id and check date.
Cite as: Probative Growth, Bankruptcy filings by chapter, court district, state and county, quarterly (U.S. Courts) v1.0.0 (doi:10.5281/zenodo.23739952); The new-lawyer pipeline by jurisdiction: bar exam pass rates and new admissions, 2025 v1.0.0 (doi:10.5281/zenodo.23721443); CFPB complaints about debt collection, credit reporting and debt management, by state and month v1.0.0 (doi:10.5281/zenodo.23733731); Legal deserts: law offices and lawyers per resident in every U.S. county v1.0.0 (doi:10.5281/zenodo.23721430); Spanish-speaking demand vs Spanish-speaking lawyer supply, by state and metro v1.1.0 (doi:10.5281/zenodo.23656758); Law firm size, solos and receipts, by state: Census SUSB 2022, Nonemployer Statistics 2024 and Economic Census 2022 v1.0.0 (doi:10.5281/zenodo.23739997); Law offices, jobs and pay by county, with solo-practice counts: BLS QCEW, Census CBP and Nonemployer Statistics v1.0.0 (doi:10.5281/zenodo.23721415); Lawyer, paralegal and legal-staff pay by state and metro (BLS OEWS) v1.0.0 (doi:10.5281/zenodo.23734840); Legal need by county: who may need a lawyer, from the American Community Survey v1.0.0 (doi:10.5281/zenodo.23741886); Legal-services prices and jobs, monthly (BLS CPI, PPI and CES) v1.0.0 (doi:10.5281/zenodo.23734854); CC BY 4.0. https://probativegrowth.com/markets/montana/bankruptcy/
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How this page is built
Each figure is copied from one record of the dataset named with it, joined to this state and practice through the open practice and place crosswalk. Nothing is estimated. Methods, inputs and limits.