We present new evidence on the violation of priority of claims in bankruptcy and recovery rates using a sample of 222 firms that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy between 1993 and 2004. Our study reveals a significant reduction in the violations of priority of claims compared to research on prior periods. In particular, equity holders appear to have lost their ability to extract concessions in violation to priority of claims. These results are consistent with changes in both court practices and laws transferring power to the secured creditors over our sample period. We also find an increase in the time from the date of a bankruptcy filing to reaching plan confirmation in those cases where absolute priority rule is not violated. Effectively, the potential benefits creditors receive from maintaining the absolute priority may be reduced by increased costs due to a longer process