Come across how to collect your coin after winning a judgment in small claims court. You have options if the loser refuses to pay what you're owed.

On This Page

  • Utilise Small Claims Judgment To Get Paid
  • Record Your Small Claims Courtroom Judgment
  • Seizing Assets To Pay Your Judgment

Small claims court should be a cheaper, easier way to recover money to which you're entitled. For the most part, information technology is indeed cheaper. Nevertheless, information technology's not ever piece of cake.

Many people become so defenseless upwards in a modest claims lawsuit that they forget to think most the outcome.

In other words, how are yous going to really recover money from the other side once you win?

Just winning a small claims case does non mean you become paid. In a lawsuit, "winning" means getting a judgment — a piece of paper from the court stating y'all are entitled to coin.

Ofttimes, someone who loses a instance will voluntarily pay the judgment and you get your money. But what happens when the person you have a judgment against refuses to pay?

This commodity will go over the judgment process and your options to go your money as rapidly as possible.

How To Use a Small Claims Judgment To Get Paid

Gavel resting atop pile of money

If the defendant (the person you lot sued) is a sore loser, there are several ways for you to force them to pay what they owe. All those methods begin with one very of import certificate: the judgment.

A pocket-size claims court judgment is a brusk courtroom social club — 2 pages at near — that says who won a lawsuit. A California judgment, for case, is a backup-the-blank certificate prepared past the court clerk.

If you lot won and asked the court to award you money, the judgment will say exactly how much money you are due from the accused.

Once you take the judgment, make a listing of assets the accused can use to pay your judgment. Those assets might be in the class of money in banking concern accounts, real estate, or personal property.

Judgment Debtor'south Examination

When you win in pocket-size claims court and the court orders a judgment against the accused, you become the judgment creditor and the person who owes yous money is the judgment debtor.

Every bit the judgment creditor, y'all have a correct to know what assets the judgment debtor has. Many courts automatically enquire the judgment creditor to fill out a grade list their assets, including bank accounts, existent estate, and employment wages.

Simply if the debtor won't cooperate, you'll demand to asking another hearing. Some states call information technology a judgment debtor examination. It can too be called a hearing to disembalm assets or a hearing regarding a statement of assets.

In this hearing, the defendant volition give sworn testimony, merely as if they were being called equally a witness in a trial. Also like in a trial, lying in a judgment debtor examination is against the law. The defendant volition have to testify about their sources of income and what property they own.

The information from the hearing can so be used to pursue payment of the judgment. You might be able to take the accused's money out of the bank, garnish their wages, or put a judgment lien against their house.

Tape Your Minor Claims Court Judgment

Woman stamps document from small claims court

Make sure that your judgment is in the public record. In most states, this is accomplished by recording the judgment in the function of your county clerk.

Contact the clerk for the county where your small claims case was decided for instructions on recording a judgment.

Typically, you'll need the original judgment, or an abstract (summary) of the judgment, and the full, correctly spelled names of all parties to your case. You may have to pay a pocket-size recording fee.

Getting your judgment in the public record is important, both as a legal pace and as a persuasion tactic. A judgment properly attached to someone's name means that your judgment volition also be attached to any records begetting their name. In virtually states, this ways that the possessor will be unable to sell their firm or other property without first paying the judgment against them.

In this mode, recording a judgment tin be a way of "soft persuasion." It pressures the other side to voluntarily pay you in gild to bear their business normally. If that doesn't work, you can accept the side by side footstep: really seizing the accused's assets.

Seizing Assets To Pay Your Judgment

The courtroom awards your judgment, but enforcing the judgment is up to yous.

Near lawyers consider a defendant "judgment proof" if the defendant has no assets or wages. If you take a judgment-proof defendant, it makes little difference whether the legal instance is solid. You tin't recover money that doesn't exist.

Fortunately, judgment awards in most states are valid for five or more than years, and may be renewed before they lapse. If the accused's financial circumstances change, you still have a shot at collecting your money.

Once you've identified the judgment debtor's assets, you have more than options.

Option i: Seize Money in Depository financial institution Accounts

Red piggy bank inside a small vault

The well-nigh straightforward option for getting what you lot're owed is taking money from a bank account, also known as a bank levy.

At the hearing or judgment debtor test, you lot should have obtained a list of the other side'south bank accounts, with account numbers.

With the bank account data, you can go to the sheriff (or other process server designated by your state's police force) and place your bank levy. This allows you to get your judgment money direct out of the accused's bank account.

The biggest problem with this arroyo is that losing defendants often don't have a slap-up bargain of money lying around. It's possible that their bank account will non accept enough money to satisfy the amount of money y'all are owed.

In that case, you will need to acquire money from another source.

Option 2: Garnish Wages

Person opening a check in an envelope from small claims court win

The next method of getting your money is taking it directly out of the defendant'south paycheck. This procedure is called garnishment, and it allows you to take a percentage of the accused's wages every month until your judgment is paid in full.

Like a banking company levy, a garnishment would too exist accomplished with the aid of a sheriff or other person designated by state law. Essentially, the sheriff'southward function would collect the money every month and transfer information technology to you.

A garnishment is slower and more complicated than a bank levy. Information technology tin be more successful, though, because it doesn't need the accused to have a lot of coin set aside to pay a judgment. By using the defendant'south future wages to pay your current judgment, it puts less strain on the accused and gets your money relatively speedily.

Annotation that in some states, a small claims judgment can as well society the losing party to pay a judgment on a payment plan. In other words, the court club itself volition specify how payments will exist made and in what menstruation of time. If this is an option in your country, try a court-ordered payment program before resorting to wage garnishment.

Pick iii: Get a Judgment Lien

Small toy house with chains around it and gavel resting on it

Finally, if you lot cannot get paid speedily, you may want to assert a judgment lien over the defendant's belongings. A lien is a merits against someone'south holding to secure payment of a debt.

If you successfully recorded the judgment in the county clerk'due south function, you can now use that judgment to assert a lien confronting the accused'southward real estate.

Basically, y'all do this by recording your judgment against a particular property. This entitles you to payment of your judgment upon auction of the property. Equally the judgment creditor, y'all can also foreclose upon that real estate lien, merely this may require some other court activity, depending on your country.

Judgment liens can also be obtained against personal property, though the method of doing this varies by state and type of holding. In the event that you lot believe this may be a skilful option in your case, yous should contact a lawyer for specific legal advice.

Make Sure Yous Become Paid

Lawyers may tell y'all that a judgment against an uninsured defendant, whether from small claims courtroom or otherwise, is non worth the newspaper it's written on. As yous can see, this is not always truthful. The fact remains that any lawsuit you lot bring should exist filed with full awareness of who you are suing and what property they have.

You have many different options to recover the money due from a defendant. Every bit long as y'all tin be patient and persistent, it is possible to get judgments even from difficult defendants.

One concluding thing: If the defendant declares bankruptcy before you collect your money, an "automatic stay" will become into event, pregnant that you lot will have to stop what you lot are doing and follow the lead of the defalcation court. If this happens, or you lot need other legal help on this topic, please consult an attorney in your state.

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