Welcome to our collection of bankruptcy quotes, where insightful words from various perspectives shed light on the experience of financial hardship, resilience, and the path to recovery. Bankruptcy, a legal status often associated with financial distress, has been a topic of contemplation for philosophers, economists, and individuals alike throughout history. From profound reflections on the nature of failure to inspiring accounts of overcoming adversity, these quotes encapsulate the multifaceted emotions and lessons intertwined with bankruptcy.
In times of economic turmoil or personal financial struggles, finding solace and guidance in the wisdom of others can be invaluable. Whether you’re navigating the complexities of bankruptcy yourself or seeking understanding and empathy for those facing such challenges, the words shared here offer a source of comfort, motivation, and perspective. As you explore the collection below, may these quotes serve as beacons of hope and encouragement, reminding us all that even in the darkest of times, there is resilience, opportunity, and the capacity for renewal. Now, without further ado, delve into the profound insights awaiting you below.
Malpractice tort reform can be something as commonsensical as the establishment of medical courts – similar to bankruptcy or admiralty courts – with special judges to make determinations in cases brought by parties claiming injury. Bill Bradley
The necessity of every one paying in his own labor for what he consumes, affords the only legitimate and effectual check to excessive luxury, which has so often ruined individuals, states and empires; and which has now brought almost universal bankruptcy upon us. Josiah Warren
In the 1970s, New York City avoided bankruptcy because wise political leaders like Gov. Hugh L. Carey believed both in strong labor unions and robust banks and companies. Felix Rohatyn
This program that the Republican majority has taken us toward as a country is leading us to fiscal bankruptcy. Chaka Fattah
Today, certain people file for bankruptcy, businesses and individuals, and it no longer has the stigma it once had. Now it’s almost considered wise, a way to regroup and come back again. David Dinkins
In September 2008 – as Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy and AIG, the world’s biggest insurance company, accepted a federal bailout – Senator John McCain of Arizona, in what was widely viewed as a political move, suspended his presidential campaign and called on Obama to rush back to Washington for a bipartisan meeting at the White House. Andrew Ross Sorkin
Bankruptcy represents a longstanding commitment in this country to helping people get a fresh start. This principle has never been giving only certain people a fresh start. Tim Johnson
When I became CEO of Xerox 10 years ago, the company’s situation was dire. Debt was mounting, the stock sinking and bankers were calling. People urged me to declare bankruptcy, but I felt personally responsible for tens of thousands of employees. Anne M. Mulcahy
The company, Tiffany Studios, ended up in bankruptcy in 1930 – early ’30s. Susan Vreeland
In 1978, we adopted a new Bankruptcy Code in the United States, and a principal part of this was designed to adjust to the new corporation, to find ways to let a corporation that had gotten into financial trouble reorganize itself. A big part of the selling point on this bankruptcy law was, ‘It will preserve jobs.’ Elizabeth Warren
The moral and constitutional obligations of our representatives in Washington are to protect our liberty, not coddle the world, precipitating no-win wars, while bringing bankruptcy and economic turmoil to our people. Ron Paul
A bankruptcy judge can fix your balance sheet, but he cannot fix your company. Gordon Bethune
There are lots of businesses that are well in excess of $9 billion that have gone into bankruptcy, that have been mismanaged. And that has not served anyone very well. Roger Goodell
His lack of education is more than compensated for by his keenly developed moral bankruptcy. Woody Allen
Undoubtedly, there are a number of well-developed, mainly female, stars helping Miss Taylor to hold the film industry together: Sophia Loren, Anita Ekberg, etc. But such an insistence on cheesecake smells of bankruptcy. Patrick Kavanagh
One’s ability to enter into thousands of lawsuits as a tool for success, or to use bankruptcy to avoid paying your former employees and vendors, have little relevance when trying to create good government. John Hickenlooper
It is imperative that we make consumers more aware of the long-term effects of their financial decisions, particularly in managing their credit card debt, so that they can avoid financial pitfalls that may lead to bankruptcy. Daniel Akaka
I often say to entrepreneurs, ‘If Lehman Brothers were Lehman Brothers & Sisters, it wouldn’t have gone into bankruptcy.’ Shinzo Abe
Bipartisanship has taken us to the brink of bankruptcy. We don’t need bipartisanship, we need application of principle… Where was the call for bipartisanship during the Obamacare debate? Not a single Republican voted for it. It wasn’t about bipartisanship, it was about having the votes to dictate your will. Richard Mourdock
They said it was impossible to touch the third rail of politics, to take on public-sector unions and to reform a pension and health benefits system that was headed to bankruptcy. But with bipartisan leadership, we saved taxpayers $132 billion dollars over 30 years and saved retirees their pensions. We did it. Chris Christie
The dearth of business activity on the traditional day of rest makes Sunday an ideal time to declare insolvency. Bankruptcy petitions are time-stamped to the minute, instantly dividing a failed company’s dealings into pre-bankruptcy transactions and post-bankruptcy transactions. Brendan I. Koerner
When I was at Marvel, they were in bankruptcy, which is hard to believe now with ‘Avengers 2’ out, but it was during the 1990s. It was a troubled place. Comic book sales were dropping. Work was scattered. Chris Renaud
Generally speaking, companies get into bankruptcy as a kind of meritocracy. Somebody made some sort of big mistake, to get into bankruptcy, and very often, a part of the mistake is too much leverage. Wilbur Ross
Healthcare is a human right. No one should face bankruptcy or death because of lack of healthcare. All Americans – regardless of their health or residential status – should be able to access the healthcare they need, whenever they need it. Deb Haaland
To be honest, most of my troubles – bankruptcy, drinking, gambling – were self-inflicted. Jimmy White
As president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, I have seen private equity firms plunder company after company, taking rich fees for themselves and cutting costs until there’s nothing left to cut. Time and again I’ve seen their reckless behavior drive companies to declare bankruptcy. James P. Hoffa
When there were fears about the future of this nation’s older cities… when a few of the cities teetered on the brink of bankruptcy, all eyes were focused on Chicago for contrast. Jane Byrne
It is said that the world is in a state of bankruptcy, that the world owes the world more than the world can pay. Ralph Waldo Emerson
Liberty never had to file bankruptcy, thanks to God’s blessings, but we did go through tough times and painful debt restructuring in the 1990s. Jerry Falwell, Jr.
I was able to solve enough big problems along the way that the sheriff didn’t come along and put the ‘bankruptcy’ sign up. Fred DeLuca
It is understandable that the Fed injects cash to avoid the collapse of the stock market, but basically it is bad policy for monetary authorities to intervene to save speculators from bankruptcy. This is not their role. Maurice Allais
We cannot allow the bankruptcy of a euro member state like Greece to turn into a second Lehman Brothers. Wolfgang Schauble
Disappointment is a sort of bankruptcy – the bankruptcy of a soul that expends too much in hope and expectation. Eric Hoffer
Nevada was hit hardest by the recession – highest unemployment, highest foreclosure rate, highest bankruptcy rate. Brian Sandoval
The Orderly Liquidation Authority prescribed by Dodd-Frank should be repealed and replaced by an amendment to the U.S. Bankruptcy Code which would operate to prevent cross-default provisions from impacting derivatives books so long as mark-to-market payments are being made in a timely fashion. Paul Singer
Economic growth must be the central issue because it is only through growth that the devastating threat of national bankruptcy can be averted. Furthermore, it is only by reviving American economic growth that the West’s global predominance can be sustained, and peace and freedom kept secure around the world. Robert Zubrin
Enron Field in Houston, the Trans World Dome in St. Louis and PSINet Stadium in Baltimore are just three of the modern-day coliseums named for companies that have found new homes in bankruptcy court. Alex Berenson
Enron had already collapsed and filed for bankruptcy protection by the beginning of 2002. But despite complaints from short sellers that corporations had used accounting gimmickry to inflate their profits, many investors thought the crisis at Enron was an isolated case. Alex Berenson
As it happens, Cumberland was on the verge of bankruptcy and had to give up football. But the villainous Heisman made it play a game that had been scheduled when Cumberland still had a team, or Heisman threatened to demand a $3,000 forfeiture fee that could well have put the school out of existence. Frank Deford
In our equities business, 49 of the 50 most important Lehman clients are back doing business with us. The flows are 75 to 80 per cent of what they were prior to the bankruptcy. The issues which damaged Lehman were around commercial mortgages and illiquid private equity assets. Bob Diamond
The entire exhibitions industry in the United States of America has filed for bankruptcy. Jeffrey Katzenberg
The Enron scandal is worthy of the highest level of scrutiny, both because of the enormity of the crimes that may have been committed and because of what the largest bankruptcy in American history has already begun to reveal about the weaknesses in our nation’s corporate structures and regulatory oversight. Adam Cohen
High bankruptcy rates, increased credit card debt, and identity theft make it imperative that all of us take an active role in providing financial and economic education during all stages of one’s life. Ruben Hinojosa
I have gone through some bad times with my own business. At one point, I was working my socks off, driving, delivering, baking. It was hard, hard work. But I worked through it. Running your own bakery is hard. I never came close to bankruptcy, but I had to cut back on staff. Paul Hollywood
We spend our way to the poorhouse. We buy giant TVs and iPads. Our children wear nice clothes thanks to high-interest credit cards and payday loans. We purchase homes we don’t need, refinance them for more spending money, and declare bankruptcy, often leaving them full of garbage in our wake. Thrift is inimical to our being. J. D. Vance
In this most powerful nation in the world, lack of access to health care should not force local and state governments, companies and workers into bankruptcy, while causing unnecessary illness and hospitalization. John Conyers
The 2008 economic crisis and Great Recession forced widespread restructuring throughout the U.S. economy – not unlike a company gritting its teeth through a lifesaving bankruptcy. Roger Altman
Socialism is the gradual and less violent form of communism, and socialist is the project of the European Union, which was born in Maastricht in 1992. The intent was to save socialism in Europe after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the predictable bankruptcy of the welfare state in the West as well. Vladimir Bukovsky
Other countries around the world make employees and retirees first in the priority. For example, in Mexico, the bankruptcy laws say if a company wants to go bankrupt… obligations to employees and retirees will have a first priority. That has an effect on every negotiation that takes place with every company in Mexico. Elizabeth Warren
We spend to pretend that we’re upper class. And when the dust clears – when bankruptcy hits or a family member bails us out of our stupidity – there’s nothing left over. Nothing for the kids’ college tuition, no investment to grow our wealth, no rainy-day fund if someone loses her job. J. D. Vance
Know what happens when an individual declares bankruptcy and how it affects his or her life. Marilyn vos Savant
If we don’t change, millions of American families are just one medical emergency, or one layoff, away from financial disaster and bankruptcy. Jim Cooper
You never cash out a 401(k) or IRA to pay off debt, unless it’s to avoid a foreclosure or bankruptcy. Dave Ramsey
By the time most people file for bankruptcy, their credit is already trashed, they have a high debt-to-income ratio – a key indicator lenders look at – and they’ve likely defaulted on more than a few accounts. Jean Chatzky
Bankruptcy is about financial death and financial rebirth. Bankruptcy is the great American story rewritten. We’re a nation of debtors. Elizabeth Warren
Family responsibility, yes, and always. Family bankruptcy due to the cruel rules of government, no. Barbara Mikulski
Bankruptcy exposes the economic vulnerability and insecurity of middle class women. Elizabeth Warren
An expenditure of words without income of ideas will lead to intellectual bankruptcy. Ravi Zacharias
Capitalism without bankruptcy is like Christianity without hell. Frank Borman
We added Medicare Part D to a system facing bankruptcy and gave no thought to means testing it. Bob Inglis
Together with a team of financial and legal experts I have spent months exploring all possible alternatives to bankruptcy but to no avail. Shane Filan
Bankruptcy is a serious decision that people have to make. Herb Kohl
Most women file for bankruptcy in the aftermath of a serious medical problem, a job loss, or a family break up. It is hard to protect against those. Elizabeth Warren
We have a duty to ensure that patients don’t have to worry whether they’ll be dropped from their coverage if they get sick. Small business owners shouldn’t have to break the bank to provide coverage to their employees. And families should not be forced into bankruptcy because of a medical crisis. Jeff Merkley
The assumption that Washington could and would resolve Lehman Brothers without a bankruptcy, as it had Bear Stearns, was the single biggest mistake in the series of mistakes in 2007 and 2008 that led to the financial panic and the ensuing epidemic of job losses. David Malpass
So that this thing that aired in 1963 would result a few years later in personal bankruptcy, would result in having people be on edge with me, wondering when I’m going to blow up. Shelley Berman
You look at what happened with Chrysler, it went through that bankruptcy, and it’s re-emerged in a much different fashion, privately held in some of those things, and it’s really putting out a great product. Bill Huizenga
If lenders are forced to scale back student lending because private student loans are subject to bankruptcy discharge, many students will be denied access to higher education. Trent Franks
Political grandstanding might make for great soundbites for the evening news, but it will do nothing to help the people that go to work every day knowing that they’re one health emergency away from bankruptcy. It will do nothing to help the hospitals struggling to keep their doors open under the crushing cost of uncompensated care. Steve Bullock
In 1997, the National Bankruptcy Review Commission recommended that chapter 12 of the Federal Bankruptcy Code, the chapter that contains bankruptcy protection for family farmers, be made permanent. Tim Holden
I had to escape the destruction of my father’s bankruptcy and all that difficulty. Brendan Coyle
Some economists estimate that for every family that goes bankrupt, there are about 15 more who are in the same amount of financial trouble and would profit from bankruptcy but just haven’t filed. Elizabeth Warren
Excessive hype, bankruptcy, cash burning like autumn leaves – such is the stuff of short-selling. Gary Weiss
All taxpayers feel a tremendous sense of frustration as they see many tens of billions of dollars of bonuses paid to the same mega banks that were on the brink of bankruptcy and were only saved by massive government rescue money and support. We are not satisfied by the fact that many of them have paid the money back, nor should we be. John Delaney
Unemployment, foreclosures, bankruptcy – the cure is not more government spending, but helping businesses create jobs. Brian Sandoval
The women who file for bankruptcy played by all the rules, but they are still in economic freefall. Elizabeth Warren
The country – or the government – is headed for bankruptcy. So we’re going to be continuing to speak out against corporate welfare as something that hurts everybody except those direct beneficiaries. Charles Koch
As I think through the issue of funding the rebuilding of Iraq, I think about the analogy of a bankruptcy proceeding. There is no doubt that Iraq as a country is bankrupt. Arlen Specter
Most unfortunately, Enron’s plunge into bankruptcy court also cost many of its rank-and-file employees their savings. Alex Berenson
The story of Detroit’s bankruptcy was simple enough: Allow capitalism to grow the city, campaign against income inequality, tax the job creators until they flee, increase government spending in order to boost employment, promise generous pension plans to keep people voting for failure. Rinse, wash and repeat. Ben Shapiro
Fractional reserve banks are sitting ducks and are always subject to contraction. When the banks’ state of inherent bankruptcy is discovered, for example, people will tend to cash in their deposits, and the contractionary, deflationary pressure could be severe. Murray Rothbard
Personal savings accounts to me are one of the most powerful things, not necessarily in saving, solvency, or bankruptcy of the program, but in guaranteeing, the words I used a few minutes ago, a safe and secure retirement for our seniors. Bill Frist
Businesses which were slow to recognize the power of the Internet in the mid ’90s were quickly left behind. For example, Blockbuster failed to innovate with streaming technology and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2010. Perianne Boring
Medical debts are the number-one cause of bankruptcy in America. Barbara Ehrenreich
Greece’s debts are all denominated in euros, but it isn’t clear who holds how much of those debts. For that reason, the consequences of a national bankruptcy would be incalculable. Greece is just as systemically important as a major bank. Wolfgang Schauble
We ought to have a platform to plan to save Medicare from bankruptcy. Steve Scalise
I feel somewhat responsible for the Borders Books bankruptcy. Susan Orlean
But again, you know, the views that we’ve expressed are transferring power back from the federal government to the states, giving Alaska an incredible opportunity to expand its economy, especially at a time when our federal government is coming close to bankruptcy. So that is a broad-based appeal. It’s not an extreme view. Joe Miller
I can’t think of another enterprise other than being a homeowner that can’t have its debt restructured in bankruptcy. Corporations can but a homeowner can’t? Now with securitization the homeowner can’t go to the owner of the loan and work things out. Eli Broad
A Fed loan to Lehman Brothers would not have prevented a bankruptcy. Henry Paulson
In 1958, my father invested everything he had in a business venture and became the largest automobile dealership in Chicago for Ford’s new Edsel line. But Edsel sales plummeted and my father fell into bankruptcy. I watched him struggle; working long hours to protect us from poverty. Radhanath Swami
Our schools should get five years to get back to where they were in 1963. If they’re still bad maybe we should declare educational bankruptcy, give the people their money and let them educate themselves and start their own schools. William Bennett
Phil Walden had complete faith in us, and I’ll respect him forever for that. I think he sunk about $150,000 in us. He was close to bankruptcy a lot of the time, and Atlantic kept telling him we didn’t have a chance. Butch Trucks
This filing spike is a result of bad information being pushed on people, and then they file for bankruptcy out of fear. Steve Bartlett
Even if you were to fall into extreme financial hardship and file for bankruptcy, you need to understand that your student loan debt will not be discharged in bankruptcy. It is the Velcro of all debts. Suze Orman
When I came in, the city was on the edge of bankruptcy. I’m proud of what I did. I built the foundation that mayors after me built upon – particularly Bloomberg. But the foundation was essential because if it hadn’t occurred, we would have been another Detroit. Ed Koch
A normal way that the American free market system has worked is that we have a process of unwinding. It’s called bankruptcy. It doesn’t mean, necessarily, that the industry is eclipsed or that it’s gone. Often times, the phoenix rises out of the ashes. Michele Bachmann
We are continuing this policy in bleeding America to the point of bankruptcy. Allah willing, and nothing is too great for Allah. Osama bin Laden
We do not project power from bankruptcy court. We’re borrowing a million dollars a minute. It’s got to stop somewhere. Rand Paul
Our institutional framework needs to be bolstered further. We have to implement laws like the proposed Bankruptcy Code and GST (Goods and Services Tax), which will create efficiencies and strongly support the business environment. Chanda Kochhar
