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Cass County, Linden, Texas

Cass County

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

 

When it comes to defending, collecting, and enforcing judgments, Busby & Associates has the experience and skills you need. 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 Cass County, Texas. If you’re a judgment creditor who is struggling to collect from a debtor in Cass County, Texas, contact us, and we’ll provide you with the guidance and support you need to recover your judgment.

 

Texas Judgment liens in Cass County

A properly fixed judgment lien can act as a lien on all nonexempt real property owned by the judgment debtor in Cass County. To create the lien, the judgment creditor must record and index an abstract of judgment properly. The abstract must be filed in every county where the debtor has property to fix the lien. The lien remains valid for ten years from the date of recordation and indexing, subject to the judgment not becoming dormant. Only final judgments, not interlocutory ones, can form the basis of a lien. However, an abstract of judgment can still be filed if the judgment is being appealed or a supersedeas bond has been filed. If the creditor establishes a lien before the appeal, the lien remains valid even if the judgment is affirmed. These rules only apply to Texas state trial court judgments, and for the enforcement of judgments from other states and foreign countries, the judgment must first be domesticated in Texas before an abstract can be filed.

 

Texas Abstract of Judgment

If you have a judgment in Texas, it’s important to understand the requirements for abstracting it. Typically, 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, excluding small claims and justice courts. In these types of courts, the judgment creditor is not permitted to prepare their own abstract. Additionally, abstracts of federal court judgments require certification from the clerk of the court. In Cass County, Texas, those seeking to abstract a judgment lien can do so at the County Clerk’s office located at 604 TX-8, Linden, Texas 75563.

 

Contents

When creating an abstract of judgment in Texas, specific details must be included to make it valid. These details consist of the names of the plaintiff and defendant, the defendant’s birthdate (if available), the defendant’s driver’s license and social security numbers (if available), the suit number, the defendant’s address or citation information, the date the judgment was rendered, the amount of the judgment and balance due, any child support arrearage, and the interest rate. The abstract must also include the mailing address for each plaintiff or creditor, and it must be verified by the creditor’s attorney. A penalty filing fee will be imposed if the mailing address is not included. Unverified declarations are not permitted.

Recordation of Judgment Liens Abstract

Recording the abstract of judgment in Cass County is essential if the debtor possesses real property there. The Cass County clerk is responsible for receiving the abstract and documenting it in the county’s real property records. The clerk must also mention the date and time of recording on the abstract and include it in the alphabetical index to the real property records. This index contains the names of the plaintiff and defendant and the page number where the abstract is recorded.

 

Abstracts of Domesticated Judgment Liens.

The Uniform Enforcement of Foreign Judgments Act and the Uniform Foreign-Country Money Judgments Recognition Act provide that foreign judgments filed under these Acts are enforceable in the same way as judgments filed in the court of origin. To domesticate the judgment in Texas, the foreign judgment holder must fulfill the lien requirements.

 

Property To Which Lien Attaches Non-Exempt Real Property

All nonexempt real property located in Cass County and registered to the defendant is subject to the judgment lien.

Keeping the Judgment and Judgment Lien Alive

1.      Non-governmental Judgments

The judgment lien will remain effective for a period of 10 years from the date of recording and indexing, unless the judgment becomes dormant, in which case the lien will terminate. To maintain an active judgment, two prerequisites must be fulfilled: (1) keep the judgment valid and (2) acquire and record a new abstract of judgment. A judgment becomes dormant if no writ of execution is issued within 10 years of its creation, but it can be revived through scire facias or a debt action within two years of dormancy.

 

2.      State or State Agency Judgments.

State or state agency judgments remain effective without going dormant. At the same time, a properly filed abstract of judgment can create a lien that lasts for 20 years from the date of filing, and the lien can be renewed for an additional 20 years by submitting a renewed abstract of judgment.

 

3.      Political Subdivisions.

Dormancy statutes may result in political subdivisions’ judgments becoming dormant, but the political subdivision can revive the judgment at any time using the revival statute, Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 31.006. Hence, the judgments of political subdivisions can be revived beyond the two-year dormancy period, as the statute of limitations will not bar the political subdivision from reviving the judgment.

 

4.      Child Support Judgments.

The Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code’s § 34.001(c) ensures that judgments for child support are not subject to the dormancy statute, and this applies to any such judgments, regardless of when they were issued.

 

Property Subject to and Exempt from Execution.

1.      Property Subject to Execution.

The property of the debtor facing judgment can be seized by execution, provided it is not exempted by the constitution, statute, or any other rule of law. Usually, the following types of property are not exempt: a. Cash held or in checking or savings accounts; b. Pleasure boats, their motors, and trailers; c. Collections like stamps or coins; d. Investments such as stocks, bonds, or notes; e. f. Airplanes. There is no exempt property for corporations.

2.      Property Exempt from Execution.

Both families and single adults are exempt from having certain property executed upon, which includes: a) the homestead; b) personal property of various categories specified by law, with a fair market value totaling up to $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, limited to 25% of the $50,000/$100,000 aggregate limit; d) professionally prescribed health aids; e) worker’s compensation payments; f) cemetery lots held for the purpose of interment; g) property sold, mortgaged, or conveyed in trust by the judgment debtor, provided that the purchaser, mortgagee, or trustee can identify other property of the debtor that will satisfy the judgment; h) assets held in a spendthrift trust for the benefit of the debtor by a trustee; i) certain insurance benefits; j) particular savings plans, including retirement benefits and health savings plans; k) college savings plans; l) consigned artwork that meets specific qualifications.

Cass CountyWRITS OF GARNISHMENT.

When a judgment creditor wishes to examine if a third party owes any funds or property to the judgment debtor, they can choose the post-judgment garnishment procedure. The creditor (garnishor) can then obtain a garnishment judgment, instructing the third party (garnishee) to pay funds to the garnishor rather than the debtor.

Requirements to Issue

Garnishment can be utilized after a judgment, but only if certain requirements are fulfilled. Firstly, the creditor must possess a valid and subsisting judgment against the debtor, with the judgment being considered final and subsisting from the date of rendition. Secondly, the debtor must not have filed an approved supersedeas bond to halt execution on the judgment. Finally, the creditor must attest that, as far as they know, the debtor does not have enough property in Texas that can be executed to fulfill the judgment.

 

Procedure for Securing Issuance Jurisdiction and parties

When pursuing post-judgment garnishment, it’s essential to understand that it is a distinct lawsuit from the main case it aims to enforce. As a supplemental legal action, the third-party garnishee must be identified as the accused. Additionally, it should be filed in the same court that issued the judgment for collection, but with a different cause number.

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

The writ of garnishment must be delivered to the garnishee, and it is not mandatory for the judgment defendant to participate in the garnishment proceedings. Nevertheless, the defendant should receive a copy of the writ, the application, the accompanying affidavits, and the court’s orders as soon as possible after the garnishee has been served. The copy of the writ served to the defendant should be conspicuous and easy to comprehend, utilizing bold 12-point typeface. If the judgment debtor is not given property notice, any judgment other than one that dissolves the writ will be deemed null and void by the court.

Banks as Garnishees for Writs of Garnishment

The registered agent’s address as mentioned in the financial institution’s registration statement is the designated location for serving garnishment writs to banks, according to 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 may appoint an agent for process by submitting a statement to the Secretary of State under Section 201.103.

 

Officer’s Return.

The responsibility for submitting a return that adheres to the citation rules lies with the officer who executes a writ of garnishment. Under Tex. R. Civ. P. 663, the judgment creditor must review the return before seeking a garnishment judgment, especially in cases where the judgment is defaulted. The same regulations that apply to citations govern returns in garnishment proceedings. Failing to indicate the method and location of service on a corporate garnishee or provide a location can result in returns being deemed fatally flawed by the courts.

Forms for the form and Practical Procedure

If a bank account or other debt owed by the judgment debtor is located and it is deemed financially feasible to do so, an Application for Garnishment must be filed. The application should be accompanied by an affidavit signed by the judgment creditor’s attorney, which should include relevant information such as the original suit and judgment details, the garnishee’s name and address for service, and any available account names and numbers.

If you possess a judgment from Texas, Busby and Associates may be able to help you collect it on a contingency basis. However, for judgments from other states where the judgment debtor is in Texas, they will evaluate it on a case-by-case basis, and there may be a need for a retainer. If the judgment debtor and/or judgment is in Cass County, Busby and Associates can assist you in garnishing a bank account or financial institution to recover the judgment.

 

 

 

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Michael Busby is a Houston divorce lawyer who has been in practice for over 20 years and appears daily in the Family Law Courts of Harris County and Fort Bend County Texas

Busby & Associates , have two Houston Offices, one in Chinatown, Houston Texas and another in Independent Heights, Houston, Texas. Michael Busby is Board Certified in Family law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization.