PR – “The Phenomenon of Debt ” Symposium Features Academics, Other Experts

Leading U.S. and international scholars will gather to examine the phenomenon of debt at “A Debtor World: Interdisciplinary Academic Symposium on Debt,” sponsored by the American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI) and the University of Illinois College of Law. The symposium, scheduled for May 2-3, at the University of Illinois in Champaign, Ill., will feature a paper and presentation by each of the expert speakers on a topic related to the accumulation, psychological effects or resolution of debt. The keynote speaker at the symposium will be James Scurlock, the producer of the award-winning documentary film, Maxed Out.

Americans have committed their future cash flows at an unprecedented rate as there is almost $30,000 outstanding in consumer credit and home mortgages for every man, woman and child in the United States, according to the latest figures from the Federal Reserve. Even on an inflation-adjusted basis, that represents a thirteen-fold increase since 1946 when the figure was only $2,200. Also, business debt is nine times as large as it was in 1946. The phenomenon of rising debt levels is not confined to the United States; other countries also have experienced burgeoning levels of private debt. In the past decade, the U.S. consumer credit model has been exported to other countries as Japan, Korea and many western European countries have seen consumer debt levels skyrocket.