judgment collections services...

Judgment collection is the process of collecting the money awarded by the court. If you have a court-awarded money judgment in your favor, you are the judgment creditor and the person or entity who owes you the money is the judgment debtor. Once the judgment is awarded, it is valid and effective for collections for up to 10 years, and it can be renewed before expiration for another ten years. California law now allows for interest on unpaid judgments in the amount of 10% per year, simple interest.

As you have probably discovered, once you are awarded a judgment by the court, judgment collection is now your responsibility. If you used the services of an attorney to obtain the judgment for you, after the award of the judgment, you were probably informed that judgment collection is also a billable service. This may be why it's estimated that something like 80% of money judgments are never collected.

Judgment Creditor's Have Rights Too!

Even though most judgments go uncollected, with the right help, you as the judgment creditor, may be able to use the tools for debt collection provided by the law to get your money. Collection law provides a number of tools that can be used for judgment collection.

Debt collection law provides a number of tools to execute on the assets of the judgment debtor for judgment collection. However, in order to use the tools, you must first locate things owned by the debtor that you can 'levy on' to get your money. That's where an asset search comes into your picture.

If your debtor has a job in which he gets paid a wage, then you should also consider wage garnishment. This is a process of debt collection in which we file papers with the court that allow you to collect up to 25% of the debtor's wages every paycheck until your judgment is satisfied.

Debtor's Property is Eligible for Levy!

By law, with few exceptions, either personal property or real estate can be levied on by you, the judgment creditor, for judgment collection. This means that if the debtor owns a car or other big ticket personal property, we can file papers with the court for a personal property levy.

Likewise, real property, like houses or rental property can most likely be levied on by you, for judgment collection. This means that we can file papers with the court for a real estate levy to attach the debtor's equity in real property up to the limit of your judgment.

Personal Property Levy

Personal Property Levy is best executed by first establishing a lien on the property based on your judgment. A 'lien' is a legal term for having a charge imposed on specific property where the property is then security for paying the underlying debt represented by the lien. There are various liens which can be placed on the debtor's personal property or business.

Types of Personal Property Liens

These liens include: a writ of execution (California Code of Civil Procedure Sections 697.710), a UCC-1 (California Code of Civil Procedure Section 697.530(a)), Notice of Judgment Lien on Personal Property (Form J-1) (California Code of Civil Procedure Sections 697.510 - 697.670), and the lien created by an Order of Examination (California Code of Civil Procedure Sections 708.110(d)).

You should be aware that you only need these procedures when the debtor is refusing to pay your judgment. However, mysteriously, the legislature in passing the applicable codes put very few teeth in them in the event that the debtor is not cooperative. Perhaps the debtor lobby was too strong when the laws were being considered.

When Lien is Enforced

Nonetheless, many of the liens will be enforced when the debtor attempts to sell or refinance the property as the escrow or other agent will make sure that outstanding liens are satisfied before the transfer of the property is complete.

Real Estate Levy

Real Estate Levy starts with establishing your lien on the property based on your judgment. A 'lien' is a legal term for having a charge imposed on specific property where the property is then security for paying the underlying debt represented by the lien.

File an Abstract of Judgment

The principal lien for real property is called an Abstract of Judgment. As the name implies, this is a form filed in and recorded in the county where the real property owned by the debtor exists. Once the Abstract is recorded, it must be satisfied before the debtor can sell or refinance the property. If the lien is not satisfied, the buyer of the debtor's interest takes the property subject to the lien. The Abstract will expire 10 years from the date your judgment was entered by the court, but it can be renewed under certain conditions along with the judgment.

There are a number of requirements for filing and recording the Abstract of Judgment, so refer to California Code of Civil Procedure Section 697.310 - 697.410 for specific details. Be sure to provide all of the information about the debtor that you have and as called for on the Abstract Form or it could be set aside as void.

Force the Sale of Property

If you do not want to wait until the debtor sells or refinances his property, under certain conditions, you may be able to force the sale of the property. However, the procedure for this, while contained in the California Code of Civil Procedure, is too complicated to cover even at a summary level on this page. In addition, you may need a court order to force the sale. Unless you are knowledgeable in civil procedure and acting as an individual, you may need the assistance of an attorney to obtain such an order from the court.