Bankruptcy, the status of a debtor who has been declared by judicial process to be unable to pay his debts. Although sometimes used indiscriminately to mean insolvency, the terms have distinct legal significance. Insolvency, as used in most legal systems, indicates the inability to meet debts. Bankruptcy, on the other hand, results from a legal adjudication that the debtor has filed a petition or that creditors have filed a petition against him.