Texas Writs of Garnishment to Collect Judgment Liens from Brown County, Texas

At Busby & Associates, we are committed to helping our clients defend, collect, and enforce judgments. We are skilled in garnishing bank accounts and financial institutions, but we also offer legal services for consumer bankruptcy, family law, and divorce matters. Our team can assist both obligors and obligees with child support lien collections and defense, and domesticating foreign child support liens in Brown County, Texas. If you’re a judgment creditor struggling to collect from a debtor living in Brown County, Texas, reach out to us, and we’ll provide the guidance and support you need to recover your judgment.

Texas Judgment liens in Brown County

By properly recording and indexing an abstract of judgment, a lien is established on all of the judgment debtor’s nonexempt real estate in Brown County. To secure the lien, the abstract must be filed in every county where the debtor owns property. If the judgment does not become dormant, the lien remains in effect for ten years from the date of recordation and indexing. The judgment on which the lien is based must be final and not interlocutory, but if the judgment is being appealed or a supersedeas bond has been filed, an abstract may still be filed. If a creditor has established a lien before the appeal, the appeal does not negate the lien in the event of an affirmation. These rules apply exclusively to Texas state trial court judgments, and to enforce judgments from other states or foreign countries, the judgment must first be domesticated in Texas before an abstract can be filed.

Texas Abstract of Judgment

Understanding the rules around abstracts of judgment in Texas can be complex. Generally speaking, the judge, justice of the peace, clerk of the court, judgment creditor, agent, attorney, or assignee can prepare the abstract for judgments rendered in most courts. However, in small claims and justice courts, the judgment creditor is not allowed to prepare their own abstract. Additionally, abstracts of federal court judgments require certification from the clerk of the court. For those needing to abstract a judgment lien in Brown County, Texas, the County Clerk’s office at 200 S Broadway St #101, Brownwood, Texas 76801 is the place to go.

Contents

In Texas, a judgment must be recorded with an abstract that includes specific details. These details include the names of the plaintiff and defendant, the defendant’s birthdate (if known), the defendant’s driver’s license and social security numbers (if known), the suit number, the defendant’s address or citation information, the judgment date, the amount of the judgment and balance due, any child support arrearage, and the interest rate. Additionally, the abstract must include the creditor’s or plaintiff’s mailing address, and it must be verified by the creditor’s attorney. Failure to include the mailing address will result in a penalty filing fee. Unverified declarations are not allowed.

Recordation of Judgment Liens Abstract

For debtors who possess real property in Brown County, it is necessary to record the abstract of judgment in the same county. The Brown County clerk receives the abstract and records it in the county’s real property records. Moreover, the clerk has to note the exact date and time of recording on the abstract. Simultaneously, the clerk must also enter the abstract in the alphabetical index to the real property records, containing the names of both the plaintiff and defendant and the page number of the abstract’s recording.

Abstracts of Domesticated Judgment Liens.

Under the Uniform Enforcement of Foreign Judgments Act and the Uniform Foreign-Country Money Judgments Recognition Act, judgments filed according to these Acts can be enforced just like local judgments. The foreign judgment holder who wishes to domesticate the judgment in Texas must satisfy the lien requirements.

Property To Which Lien Attaches Non-Exempt Real Property

All nonexempt real property owned by the defendant in Brown County, the county of recordation, is subject to the judgment lien.

Keeping the Judgment and Judgment Lien Alive

1.      Non-governmental Judgments

Following the date of recording and indexing, a judgment lien will continue for 10 years unless the judgment becomes dormant, in which case the lien will cease to exist. To prevent this from happening, two steps must be taken: (1) keep the judgment alive and (2) obtain and record a new abstract of judgment. A judgment becomes dormant if no writ of execution is issued within a decade of its creation, but it can be reactivated through scire facias or a debt action within two years of dormancy.

2.      State or State Agency Judgments.

A lien can be established for 20 years from the date of filing of a valid abstract of judgment, and a renewed abstract of judgment can renew it for another 20 years. Judgments made by the state or a state agency do not become dormant and remain enforceable throughout the duration of the lien.

3.      Political Subdivisions.

Even though political subdivisions’ judgments may go dormant due to dormancy statutes, the political subdivision can revive the judgment at any time. This is because the revival statute, Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 31.006, states that the political subdivision is not barred by the statute of limitations. As a result, the judgments of political subdivisions can be revived beyond the two-year dormancy period.

4.      Child Support Judgments.

Subsection (c) of § 34.001 of the Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code is applicable to all child support judgments, regardless of their date, and it excepts them from the dormancy statute.

Property Subject to and Exempt from Execution.

1.      Property Subject to Execution.

Unless protected by the constitution, statute, or any other rule of law, the property of the debtor subject to judgment can be seized through execution. Generally, the following categories of property are not exempt: a. Cash on hand or held in savings or checking accounts; b. Pleasure boats, their motors, and trailers; c. Collections such as stamps or coins; d. Investments like stocks, bonds, or notes; e. f. Airplanes. Exempt property is not available to corporations.

2.      Property Exempt from Execution.

Irrespective of whether they belong to a family or a single adult, the following categories of property are exempt from execution: a) the homestead; b) personal property of various categories, as defined by statute, worth up to a total of $100,000.00 for a family or $50,000.00 for a single adult without family ties; c) current wages for personal service (excluding child support payments) and unpaid commissions for personal service, up to 25% of the $50,000/$100,000 aggregate limit; d) professionally prescribed health aids; e) payments made under worker’s compensation claims; f) cemetery lots held for the purpose of interring human remains; g) any property sold, mortgaged or conveyed into trust by the judgment debtor, where the purchaser, mortgagee or trustee can identify other property that will satisfy the judgment; h) assets held by a trustee of a spendthrift trust for the benefit of the debtor; i) certain insurance benefits; j) certain savings plans, including retirement benefits and health savings plans; k) college savings plans; l) consigned artwork that meets certain criteria.

WRITS OF GARNISHMENT

To determine whether a third party owes any property or funds to a judgment debtor, a judgment creditor can opt for a post-judgment garnishment procedure. If there is a debt, the creditor (garnishor) can obtain a garnishment judgment that instructs the third party (garnishee) to make payments to the garnishor rather than the debtor.

Requirements to Issue

Following a judgment, garnishment can be used only under certain circumstances. Initially, the creditor must have a valid and subsisting judgment against the debtor, and the judgment is considered final and subsisting from the date of rendition. Secondly, the debtor must not have filed an approved supersedeas bond to prevent execution on the judgment. Finally, the creditor must attest that, to their knowledge, the debtor does not have enough property in Texas to fulfill the judgment through execution.

Procedure for Securing Issuance Jurisdiction and parties

A garnishment action after judgment is distinct from the main lawsuit it seeks to enforce. It is supplementary to the principal case and should name the third-party garnishee as the accused. The application should be submitted to the same court that delivered the judgment for collection, but with a different cause number.

Service of the writ of garnishment/notice to judgment debtor.

For the garnishment to take effect, the garnishee must receive the writ of garnishment. The judgment defendant is not a necessary party to the garnishment process; however, it is essential to serve him or her with a copy of the writ, the application, affidavits, and court orders immediately after serving the garnishee. The copy of the writ given to the defendant should convey the contents of the writ in a clear and concise manner, with bold 12-point typeface. A judgment is considered invalid if the debtor is not provided with the property notice, except for a judgment dissolving the writ.

Banks as Garnishees for Writs of Garnishment

To serve writs of garnishment on banks, the address provided as the registered agent’s address in the financial institution’s registration statement must be used, in accordance with Section 201.102 or 201.103 of the Finance Code. Out-of-state financial institutions must comply with state laws by designating an agent for process when registering with the Secretary of State under Section 201.102. Texas financial institutions can appoint an agent for process by submitting a statement to the Secretary of State under Section 201.103.

Officer’s Return.

The responsibility of returning a writ of garnishment rests with the officer, and it must conform to the rules governing citations. According to Tex. R. Civ. P. 663, the judgment creditor should carefully review the return before pursuing a garnishment judgment, particularly in instances where the judgment is defaulted. The same regulations that apply to citations govern returns in garnishment proceedings. Courts have rejected returns that do not specify how or where service was made on a corporate garnishee.

Forms for the form and Practical Procedure

When you locate a bank account or other debt that can be subjected to garnishment and determine that the funds involved make it cost effective, you can file an Application for Garnishment with a supporting affidavit. To complete the application, the judgment creditor’s attorney must sign the affidavit and provide necessary information, such as original suit and judgment details, garnishee name and officers for service, and account names and numbers if available.

Busby and Associates has the potential to assist you in collecting your judgment on a contingency basis, provided it is from Texas. Judgments from other states with the judgment debtor in Texas are evaluated on a case-by-case basis, and a retainer is usually required. If the judgment debtor and/or judgment is located in Brown County, Busby and Associates can help you garnish a bank account or financial institution.