How are money judgments enforced?

money judgment collections

The typical methods employed in enforcing money judgments include:

“Voluntary” Compliance – Very often a judgment debtor will pay the money owed to a judgment creditor and thus satisfy the money judgment. If the judgment debtor does not pay, the judgment creditor should contact him/her and ask for payment. Sometimes a simple telephone call or a short letter yields results, sometimes a lien or execution is required.

Judgment Lien – A lien is a charge, security or encumbrance on a piece of property. A judgment creditor can place a lien on both the real and personal property of the judgment debtor. When property subject to a lien is sold, either a portion of the proceeds are used to satisfy the outstanding lien or the property is sold subject to the lien.

Execution and Levy- Execution of a money judgment is obtained through a legal process of enforcing the judgment by seizure and subsequent sale of the property owned by a judgment debtor.

Wage Garnishment – a form of execution and levy, a legal process of enforcing a money judgment by directing the employer of a judgment debtor to pay a portion (typically up to 25% for a money judgment or up to 50% pursuant to a order of payment of support) of wages earned by the judgment debtor directly to the judgment creditor.

When a judgment debtor refuses to pay a money judgment, a judgment creditor typically will proceed with both judgment liens and execution to enforce the judgment.

(Reviewed 11.10.08)