South Carolina Writ of Garnishment
South Carolina reaches no part of a paycheck on ordinary or consumer judgment debt. A judgment creditor collects through an execution against property, a sheriff's levy and a supplemental proceeding before a circuit judge. Attorney review available.
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Introduction
Ask which South Carolina creditor gets paid first out of a paycheck and the question collapses, because none of them do. Section 15-39-410 of the South Carolina Code lets a circuit judge order any non-exempt property of a judgment debtor applied to the judgment, whether it sits in his own hands, in anyone else's, or is merely due to him, and then carves out one category in the same sentence: the earnings of the debtor for his personal services cannot be so applied. Section 15-39-420(2) repeats it as a flat bar on garnishment of earnings for personal services regardless of where the debt was incurred, and Section 37-5-104, captioned No garnishment, closes the consumer side. The word garnishee appears zero times across the Code chapters on execution, attachment, judgments, exemptions, clerk fees and support withholding. The only withholding notice that lands on a South Carolina employer is the one the clerk of court serves on a support order under Section 63-17-1460, and that is also the only place the federal Consumer Credit Protection Act cap does any work, with current support obligations taking priority inside it; an ordinary money judgment never joins that line. So the real contest is a race to levy. An execution binds no personal property until there is an actual attachment or levy, and then for only four months from the date of that levy under Section 15-39-100, which makes the sheriff's written memorandum of the date of every levy the document that decides who ranks where. Proceeds of a sheriff's sale of real estate go to a judgment creditor holding a prior lien. A supplemental proceeding meters rival creditors a third way: before appointing a receiver the judge must find out whether other supplementary proceedings are pending against the same debtor, those plaintiffs get notice of the appointment and of everything after it, and no more than one receiver of a judgment debtor's property may ever be appointed. DocDraft builds your South Carolina execution and supplemental-proceeding papers from your own facts, with attorney review available before you file.
Key Things to Know
- 1
South Carolina gives a judgment creditor an execution against property rather than a garnishment writ: the clerk attests it, it is directed to the sheriff of a county where the judgment is docketed, and Section 15-39-80 commands that officer to satisfy the judgment out of the debtor's personal property first and out of his real property only if sufficient personal property cannot be found.
- 2
Earnings for personal services are closed to you, with no percentage and no formula to calculate. Three provisions say so independently: Section 15-39-410 carves them out of what a judge may order applied, Section 15-39-420(2) bars garnishment of them regardless of where the debt was incurred, and Section 37-5-104 stops a consumer-debt creditor from attaching unpaid earnings at all.
- 3
Issuance is free out of the court of common pleas. Section 8-21-310(C)(1) provides that the $100 first-complaint fee leaves no further fee for the signing, sealing and issuance of execution. Budget instead for the $25 motion fee under Section 8-21-320 that the supplemental proceeding carries, and for the sheriff's charges taxed onto the bill of costs attached to the writ.
- 4
A magistrate's court runs on its own schedule: $10 to issue an execution or renew it under Section 8-21-1010(A)(7), and $10 more to the magistrate's officer for levying, posting notice of sale, conducting the sale and paying over the proceeds under Section 8-21-1060(7). Enrolling that magistrate transcript with the clerk of the circuit court costs $35.
- 5
The writ lives for ten years and the lien lives for four months. An execution may issue any time within ten years of the original entry of the judgment and has active energy for that whole period without renewal, but Section 15-39-100 provides that it binds no personal property until actual attachment or levy, and binds it then for only four months from the date of the levy.
- 6
To reach a bank account or a third-party debt you file a motion, not a writ. Once the execution has issued, Section 15-39-350 lets the judge order anyone who holds the debtor's property or owes him more than ten dollars to appear and answer about it under oath, and the appearance deadline is whatever the order sets. Paying the sheriff is permissive under Section 15-39-340, so the enforceable step is the judge's order.
- 7
A third party that denies the debt costs you a second lawsuit. Under Section 15-39-460 an adverse claim or a denial makes the property or debt recoverable only in an action brought against that party by the receiver, so there is no default judgment against a garnishee here, though the judge may freeze the asset in the meantime and may punish disobedience of a duly served order as a contempt.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Writ of Garnishment in South Carolina, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The Writ of Garnishment guide walks through them.
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South Carolina Requirements for Writ of Garnishment
Execution Against Property, Not a Garnishment Writ
Section 15-39-10(a) gives you an execution against the property of the judgment debtor. There is no numbered statewide form: Section 15-39-80 prescribes the contents instead, so the paper must be directed to the sheriff, attested by the clerk, subscribed by you or your attorney, and must state the court, the county holding the judgment roll or transcript, the parties, the judgment amount, the amount actually due and the date of docketing in the county of issue.
Issuing Clerk and the County You Choose
Section 15-39-40 lets the execution issue from the clerk of the court that originally entered the judgment or from the clerk of any county where it has been docketed or transcribed, directed to the sheriff of that county, and permits executions to several counties at once. On a magistrate judgment docketed with the clerk of the circuit court, Section 15-39-90 routes the application for leave to issue to the circuit court of the county of rendition.
Earnings for Personal Services Cannot Be Applied
Do not put a withholding figure on the paper. Section 15-39-410 excepts the earnings of the debtor for his personal services from everything a judge may order applied to the judgment, Section 15-39-420(2) bars garnishment of those earnings regardless of where the debt was incurred, and Section 37-5-104 bars attachment of unpaid earnings on consumer credit debt. The federal 25 per cent figure caps what a state may allow and is not a South Carolina entitlement.
Cost: Free to Issue, $25 for the Motion
Section 8-21-310(C)(1) provides that after the $100 first-complaint fee there is no further fee for the signing, sealing and issuance of execution. The supplemental proceeding runs on motion and Section 8-21-320 assesses $25 per motion in the court of common pleas. A magistrate charges $10 to issue or renew an execution and $10 to its officer for levying, posting, selling and paying over. A magistrate transcript enrolls for $35 and a foreign judgment dockets for $100.
Ten Years of Active Energy, Four Months of Lien
Section 15-39-30 lets the execution issue within ten years of the original entry of the judgment and gives it active energy for that whole period without renewal. Section 15-39-100 is the short clock: it binds no personal property until actual attachment or levy, and then for four months from the date of levy. On a foreign judgment Section 15-35-920 holds off any execution until thirty days after notice of filing is served.
Supplemental Proceeding to Reach a Bank or Debtor of the Debtor
Section 15-39-310 entitles you to a circuit judge's order examining the debtor once the execution is returned unsatisfied in whole or in part. Section 15-39-350 is the earlier and more useful hook: on the issuing or the return of the execution, with an affidavit that a person or corporation holds the debtor's property or owes him more than ten dollars, the judge may order them to appear and answer under oath at a time he fixes. Payment to the sheriff under Section 15-39-340 is permissive, so the order is what binds.
One Receiver Per Debtor, and Levy Date Sets Rank
Rank among ordinary creditors comes from the date of actual levy, which Section 15-39-120 makes the sheriff record in a written memorandum each process must reference. Section 15-39-900 pays sale proceeds on real estate to a prior judgment lienor. Before appointing a receiver, Section 15-39-430 makes the judge ascertain whether other supplementary proceedings are pending against the same debtor and give those plaintiffs notice, and no more than one receiver of a judgment debtor's property may be appointed.
A Denial Sends You to a Receiver's Lawsuit
There is no default judgment against a third party here. Section 15-39-460 makes an adverse claim or a denial of the debt recoverable only in an action brought against that party by the receiver, though the judge may forbid a transfer until the receiver can commence and prosecute it to judgment and execution. Section 15-39-490 supplies the pressure in the meantime: disobeying a duly served order of the judge or master is punishable as a contempt.