Writ of Garnishment
A writ of garnishment is how a judgment creditor collects from a third party holding the debtor's money. What it can reach, what it is called, and the garnishee's deadline are set by your state. Attorney review available.
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Introduction
You have a money judgment and the defendant has not paid it. A writ of garnishment is the court order that reaches past the debtor to a third party who holds money belonging to them, most often an employer who owes wages or a bank that holds a deposit account, and commands that third party to pay the money to you instead. The third party is the garnishee, and the writ binds them personally: once it is served they answer to the court, not to their customer or employee. Three things decide whether a garnishment actually collects, and all three are set by state law. First, what the writ can reach. Every state sits on top of a federal floor, but some legislate a tighter ceiling of their own, one exempts current wages for personal service almost entirely, and another exempts all of a head of family's earnings below a weekly dollar figure. Second, what the instrument is even called and which form issues it, because several states do not use the phrase writ of garnishment at all and a creditor who files the wrong paper collects nothing. Third, the clock: the garnishee has a fixed window to answer or begin withholding, and a garnishee who ignores the writ can be made to pay the judgment out of its own pocket. Select your state below for the ceiling, the form, the court, the fee, and the garnishee's deadline. DocDraft builds your garnishment papers from your facts, with attorney review available before you file.
Key Things to Know
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A writ of garnishment is a post-judgment collection order directed at a third party who holds money or property belonging to your judgment debtor, commanding that third party to turn it over to you rather than to the debtor.
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You generally need a final money judgment first. A few states allow a pre-judgment garnishment on a sworn showing, but it is the exception and it usually requires a bond.
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What the writ is called and which form issues it are state rules. Writ of garnishment, continuing writ of garnishment, garnishment summons, income execution and writ of execution plus an earnings withholding order are all the same job under different names.
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Federal law sets a nationwide FLOOR, not the operative number: under the Consumer Credit Protection Act a garnishment for ordinary debt may reach only the lesser of 25 percent of weekly disposable earnings or the amount above 30 times the federal minimum hourly wage. Your state may be stricter, and several are.
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Some states do not allow wage garnishment for ordinary consumer debt at all, or exempt an entire class of earner. In those states the writ is still worth filing, but it reaches bank accounts, receivables and other non-wage property instead of a paycheck.
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The garnishee has a statutory window to file an answer or begin withholding, measured from service. A garnishee that fails to answer can face a default judgment for the full amount of your judgment, which is why banks and payroll departments treat the writ as urgent.
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Some states issue a continuing garnishment that captures every future pay period until the judgment is satisfied, while others make you re-serve a fresh writ at intervals. That difference changes the real cost of collecting.
Key Decisions
Your Judgment
Garnishment is an enforcement remedy, so in almost every state it issues out of a case that has already produced a money judgment. A minority of states allow a pre-judgment garnishment on a sworn showing plus a bond, which is a different and much narrower route.
Yes, judgment entered and the stay period has run
The standard situation. The writ issues in the same case and must name the court, the parties and the case number exactly as the judgment does.
Most Common OptionJudgment entered very recently
Check whether your state imposes a waiting period or an automatic stay before enforcement. Serving a writ during a stay can get it dissolved and costs you the fee.
No judgment yet, the case is still pending
Only a few states allow pre-judgment garnishment, and then only on specific statutory grounds with an affidavit and usually a bond.
The writ has to state a current figure, not the number on the face of the judgment. Post-judgment interest accrues at a rate your state sets, recoverable costs are added, and any partial payments or earlier garnishment recoveries come off. A stale total is a common reason a garnishee's answer gets disputed.
Principal, interest and costs, with nothing collected yet
Show the three components separately so the garnishee and the court can check the arithmetic.
Most Common OptionPartial payments or an earlier garnishment have reduced it
Credit everything already received and keep the running calculation, because the debtor will test it.
I am not sure what interest has accrued
Find your state's post-judgment interest rate and the accrual date before you file. Overstating the balance invites a motion to dissolve.
What You Are Garnishing
This decides which instrument you file. Several states use a separate form, or a separate continuing version, for wages as opposed to a bank account, and a few bar wage garnishment for ordinary debt entirely while leaving accounts and receivables fully reachable.
The debtor's wages from an employer
The most common target and the most heavily regulated. A ceiling applies to every pay period, and some states require the continuing version of the writ.
Most Common OptionFunds in a bank or credit union account
A one-shot levy on whatever is in the account when the writ is served. Timing matters more than anything else here.
Money a third party owes the debtor, such as a receivable or a contract payment
Reaches a debt owed to your debtor. Identify the obligor precisely, because the writ binds only the garnishee you name.
I am not sure what the debtor has
Most states let you take post-judgment discovery or examine the debtor under oath before you spend money on a writ.
The Garnishee
The writ binds only the third party it names, and a writ served on the wrong corporate entity or at the wrong address collects nothing while the fee is still spent. Payroll for a large employer is frequently handled by a separate legal entity or at a central address.
Yes, I have the exact legal entity name and address
Use the registered entity name from the secretary of state record, not the trade name on the storefront or the paystub.
Most Common OptionI know the employer or bank but not the exact entity
Check the state business registry and, for a bank, its designated address for service of legal process before you file.
I only know where the debtor works informally
Confirm employment before spending the fee. A garnishee with no relationship to the debtor simply answers that it holds nothing.
Issuing and Serving
Priority decides whether your writ collects anything. Most states queue ordinary garnishments in the order they were served, and child support or spousal maintenance withholding normally comes off the top before any ordinary judgment. The ceiling is calculated once across all ordinary garnishments, not once per creditor.
No, as far as I know mine would be first
Serve promptly. In a queue state the service date is what fixes your place in line.
Most Common OptionYes, a child support or maintenance order is already in place
Expect that order to be satisfied first out of the available amount. Your writ may collect little or nothing until it ends.
Yes, another judgment creditor got there first
Your writ generally waits behind theirs. Serving anyway preserves your position for when the earlier one is satisfied.
I do not know
The garnishee's answer will usually disclose existing withholding, which is itself useful information.
Writ of Garnishment Requirements
Court, Parties, and Case Number
The court that entered the judgment, the judgment creditor and judgment debtor exactly as named in it, and the case number. A garnishment issues out of the existing case, so the caption must match the judgment rather than the original complaint if the names changed.
Garnishee Legal Name and Address for Service
The exact legal entity name of the employer, bank or other third party, plus an address where that entity accepts service of legal process. The writ binds only the garnishee it names, so a trade name or a branch address is a frequent and expensive error.