The most recent and most comprehensive empirical study of the characteristics of consumer debtors in bankruptcy is Sullivan, Warren, and Westbrook, As We Forgive Our Debtors (Oxford 1989).  More recent studies of consumer debtors who have filed bankruptcy, undertaken largely on behalf of creditors, have suggested that a significant number of debtors who file a Chapter 7 petition are able to repay a meaningful portion of their debt over a period of a few years.  These findings have prompted pending legislation that would amend the Bankruptcy Code to preclude Chapter 7 relief if a debtor can afford to repay a certain percentage of debt over several years (a "means test").  Advocates for consumer debtors, and some academics, dispute these findings and also claim that more harm than good will result from the adoption of a means test.