If you owe money to a creditor, the creditor can eventually can get a court order to collect the debt, often through wage garnishment. Note that a creditor must first file a lawsuit against you, serve you and receive a court judgment. After that point, the creditor can open a levy file with the local sheriff's office and seek to garnish your wages. A creditor authorized to garnish wages will take a portion of what you earn, possibly leaving little left to spend. However, you can stop this from happening by hiring a wage garnishment lawyer. Many times collection companies threaten wage garnishment and use it as a scare tactic to entice you to start making payments on the account. What the collection companies fail to tell you is that what they are trying to say is that "they could garnish your wages in the future if the account remains delinquent" and not that "if you do not pay today they will garnish your wages tomorrow".
Reasons For Wage Garnishment
A creditor might take this approach to pay a judgment it has obtained against you. First, it must file documents with the court which in California would mean a complaint and have summons issued by the court. Once it has received judgment it can then obtain a writ of execution, open a levy file with the local sheriff's office and then request your employer deduct funds from your wages to satisfy your debt. All of that will take the creditor some time which allows you to consider your best options. Note that in some situations wages can be garnished without the creditor obtaining a judgment. An administrative wage garnishment is often used to collect child and spousal support, even if you agree to voluntarily pay it. Back taxes and federal student loan debt can also be collected this way.When Do I Need An Attorney?
First, learn about the garnishment as much as you can by reviewing any available documentation. Contact the creditor with any questions you have but be careful as the creditor will use any number of tactics to get you to pay immediately. You can also discuss the situation with your employer’s payroll department. If wage garnishment has been authorized after the creditor received a court judgment both you and your employer will receive documentation from the creditor. If you do not know what is going on, take a look at your public records or contact the court to learn who has a judgment against you. Most local California superior courts have online case information for your review. You may also be able to make a copy of the applicable document or you could go in person to the court file room. An attorney can be useful when:- You have already paid the debt.
- You don’t owe the debt in question.
- A creditor is garnishing too much.
- You’re willing to work out other payment arrangements.
- The creditor garnishes a bank account to get around a wage exemption.
- Bankruptcy is an option; it can put an automatic stay on most wage garnishments.
- Your employer threatens to fire you over wage garnishment, which is illegal.
Wage Garnishment Considerations
Whether your goal is to stop wage garnishment or navigate the process, it can help to have a wage garnishment lawyer. This is due to the following reasons:- There Are Limits on Wage Garnishments: A creditor cannot garnish more than 25% of your wages for debt. For child support, up to 50% of your pay can be taken (or 60% for past due child support) through Income Withholding Order. If you owe back taxes, up to 75% of your wages can be garnished.
- You Can Object to Wage Garnishment: If pension income, social security, or other funds protected by law are in question, you’ve agreed to an installment payment order or filed for bankruptcy, you can file an Objection to Garnishment. Such is the case if the amount being garnished is over the limit or the court judgment was already paid. You may also be able to get lesser amount garnished if you provide the court with a list of your income and expenses for a given month.