KTVU News in Oakland did a report on increased filings - watch the video HERE.

OKLAHOMA CITY – Recent high-dollar business bankruptcies in Oklahoma, such as Shepherd Mall and Boom Drilling, have been Chapter 11 reorganization cases, but more companies are opting for straight bankruptcy, records show.

The SemGroup LP case, which involves a Tulsa-based company, was filed in Delaware.

More Oklahoma businesses are filing Chapter 7 this year than over the past couple of years, and business bankruptcies in general are trending upward in the state, according to data from the American Bankruptcy Institute.

Orange County residents and businesses filed 3,905 bankruptcies in the first six months of the year, almost doubling the number in the same period of 2007, according to the federal Bankruptcy Court Central District of California, based on filings in the Santa Ana court.

Bankruptcies filed in the region that includes Orange County totaled 27,410, a 134% increase in the first six months of 2008, compared to the same period a year ago.

That’s according to AACER, an Oklahoma City bankruptcy data and management company that gathers information from all federal bankruptcy courts in the United States.

The spike reflects the expanding financial woes that started in the mortgage and housing industries, tighter credit standards and high fuel and food prices.

At Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Hawaii business is booming, especially when it comes to providing the mandatory financial counseling that's required before someone can file for bankruptcy.

That's been increasing and figures to rise even more this year, says Wendy Burkholder, head of the agency that provides advice and counseling on how to handle debt problems.