Debt Collection Lawsuits Return to Pre-Pandemic Highs, Researchers Find
Published 2026-01-10 · Legal Niche Pros
Debt collection lawsuits have climbed back to pre-pandemic highs after a temporary pandemic-era slowdown, according to new analysis from The Pew Charitable Trusts. Researchers estimate as many as 4.7 million debt collection cases were filed in a single recent year, and filings involving contracts — a category that includes debt claims, foreclosures, and landlord-tenant cases — rose sharply in back-to-back years.
The National Center for State Courts, in a companion report cited by Pew, pointed to artificial intelligence as a possible contributing factor, suggesting AI tools may be making it easier for collection firms and debt buyers to generate and file large volumes of complaints. Notably, other civil case types did not show the same increase over the same period, a pattern researchers say points toward something specific to debt claims rather than a general rise in litigation.
Separate reporting on the underlying court data found that filings are heavily concentrated among a small number of plaintiffs — in one state, ten plaintiffs accounted for roughly 80% of the entire debt collection docket. Many of these plaintiffs are debt buyers who purchased delinquent accounts for a fraction of face value, which can leave consumers being sued by a company they've never heard of and with limited information about how many times the debt has changed hands.
Consumer advocates have renewed calls for court-level reforms, including requiring plaintiffs to prove clearer chains of ownership before a case can proceed and doing more to prevent default judgments against consumers who never see or understand the summons. Left unaddressed, researchers warn, the volume risks further congesting already strained civil dockets.
For anyone served with a debt collection lawsuit, the immediate priority is calendaring the response deadline — default judgments, not lost trials, are the most common way these cases end against consumers who don't respond at all.
Sources
- The Pew Charitable Trusts: Debt Collection Lawsuits Surge to Pre-Pandemic Highs
- The Journalist's Resource: With debt collection lawsuits rising, here's what you need to know
Read: Debt Collection Lawsuit — How to Respond Before the Deadline Passes →