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Collection agencies love when a debtor simply ignores a lawsuit; ignoring a lawsuit makes obtaining a judgment against a debtor very easy. Well since you didn’t go to court, the judge will most likely provide the creditor with a written decision, the judgment, which states the dollar amount, court costs and attorney’s fees that you’re responsible for; however, the judgment will not state how the money is to be collected. The judgment will most likely end up on your credit report and affect your credit rating.

Soon after the judgment is won, the judgment creditor, by the way you’re the judgment debtor, will start the collection process. The collection process may include supplemental proceedings, garnishment, execution of judgment and/or an agreement between you and the judgment creditor.

The creditor may conduct a supplemental proceeding to obtain asset information about the debtor such as bank accounts and wages. A creditor has the right to subpoena a document or any person to obtain this information.

The garnishee is the person or institution that holds the property or money belonging to the debtor to pay for a judgment. Garnishment is a legal process instrumented through the courts. The most commonly garnished property is bank accounts and wages. A Writ of Garnishment requires the garnishee to hold the debtors property or money until a court determines the distribution of the asset(s). The creditor usually files an Application for Writ of Garnishment, which includes the name and address of the debtors employer or bank. The Clerk of Court will then issue a Writ of Garnishment to the creditor. The creditor will then serve the Application for Writ of Garnishment, the Writ of Garnishment and the Answer to Writ of Garnishment documents on the garnishee.

If the creditor is trying to garnish checking and savings accounts, the creditor will serve a Notice of Right to Claim Exemptions and a Claim of Exemption on the garnishee and the garnishee will forward these documents to the debtor. The Clerk of Court will usually prepare a service package with all the required documents to be served on the garnishee.

Its very important that if you receive a Writ of Garnishment that you file a written Answer within twenty (20) days. Take this answer directly to the court. If you do nothing, the creditor will usually file a Motion for Default Judgment against the debtor. If the garnishee files an answer stating that it pays wages to the debtor, then a Judgment on Writ of Garnishment and Order to Pay will be entered by the court. This order will require the garnishee to pay the greater of forty (40) times the hourly minimum wage per week or twenty-five (25) percent of the debtors disposable earnings per week. If the garnishee owes the debtor money or property, other than wages, the order may require the garnishee to distribute all the funds or delivery the property to the creditor.

Within ten (10) days of the Writ of Garnishment, the debtor can file a Claim of Exemption with the court; common exemptions include certain pensions, life insurance proceeds, accident and health insurance proceeds, Veterans benefits, workers and unemployment compensation, welfare benefits, SSI benefits and social security benefits.
Usually, the creditor will then file a Notice of Dispute with the court; within ten (10) days, the court will hold a hearing on whether the disputed money or property is exempt from garnishment.

The legal process of seizing and selling a debtors property is called Execution of Judgment. This order permits the County Sheriff to enter your property to take and sell the debtors property at a public auction. The proceeds of the sale are then applied to the amount order in the judgment. The creditor will have to file a Notice of Right to Claim Exemptions at least ten (10) days before the Clerk of Court will issue a Writ of Execution. It’s very important that the debtor files a Claim of Exemption with the court; else, the county sheriff can take possession and auction off any and all of the debtors personal property. If the debtor files a Claim of Exemption with the court, the creditor will usually file an Objection to Claim of Exemption and the judge will decide if the property is exempt.

By filing for bankruptcy, filing an appeal and posting a bond with the court or filing a Motion to Set Aside Judgment and posting a bond, the collection process can be stayed.

When the debtor partially pays the judgment, the creditor must file a Partial Satisfaction of Judgment with the court. When the judgment is paid in full, a Full Satisfaction of Judgment is filed with the Court. If the creditor fails to file a Satisfaction of Judgment when the judgment is paid, then the debtor can file a Motion for Satisfaction of Judgment with the court.

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