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

Busby & Associates is a law firm that understands the challenges involved in collecting a judgment. That’s why we are skilled in defending, collecting, and enforcing judgments, with a particular focus on garnishment of bank accounts and financial institutions. We also offer legal support for consumer bankruptcy, family law, and divorce matters, and we can assist both obligors and obligees with child support lien collections and defense, and domestication of foreign child support liens in Gaines County, Texas. If you are a judgment creditor who needs help recovering a judgment from a debtor in Gaines County, Texas, contact us, and we will provide you with the guidance and support you need.

Texas Judgment liens in Gaines County

If you want to establish a judgment lien on all nonexempt real property owned by a judgment debtor in Gaines County, you need to properly record and index an abstract of judgment. The abstract must be filed in every county where the debtor owns property. The lien will remain valid for ten years from the date of recordation and indexing, unless the judgment becomes dormant. Only final judgments, not interlocutory ones, can be used as the basis for a lien. However, an abstract of judgment can still be filed on a final judgment being appealed or on which a supersedeas bond has been filed. If a creditor has taken the necessary steps to establish a lien before the judgment is appealed, those steps will not be invalidated in the event of an affirmation. These rules apply only to judgments from Texas state trial courts. To create a lien on a judgment from another state or foreign country, you must first domesticate the judgment in Texas before filing the abstract.

Texas Abstract of Judgment

Texas has established specific guidelines for abstracting a judgment that must be adhered to. Typically, the abstract of judgment can be prepared by the judge, justice of the peace, clerk of the court, judgment creditor, agent, attorney, or assignee for judgments rendered in most courts, except for small claims and justice courts where the judgment creditor is not allowed to prepare their own abstract. Keep in mind that abstracts of federal court judgments require certification from the clerk of the court. To abstract your judgment lien in Gaines County, Texas, you can go to the County Clerk’s office located at 101 S Main St # 206, Seminole, Texas 79360.

Contents

An abstract of judgment in Texas must meet certain requirements to be considered valid, such as indicating 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 judgment creditor and be verified by the creditor’s attorney. If the mailing address is absent, a penalty filing fee may be charged. Unverified statements are not admissible.

Recordation of Judgment Liens Abstract

For proper documentation, the abstract of judgment should be recorded in Gaines County where the debtor has real property. The Gaines County clerk receives the abstract and documents it in the county’s real property records, indicating the date and time of recording. The clerk must also include the abstract in the alphabetical index to the real property records, showing the names of both 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 grant foreign judgments the same enforceability as local judgments. In Texas, the foreign judgment holder must meet the lien requirements when domesticating the judgment.

Property To Which Lien Attaches Non-Exempt Real Property

Gaines County, as the county of recordation, is where the judgment lien is effective on all nonexempt real property owned by the defendant.

Keeping the Judgment and Judgment Lien Alive

1.      Non-governmental Judgments

After the recording and indexing of an abstract, the judgment lien continues for ten years, but it becomes dormant if a writ of execution is not issued within that time, resulting in the lien ending. Hence, it is necessary to keep the judgment active and obtain and record a new abstract of judgment to maintain the lien. A dormant judgment can be revived through scire facias or a debt action filed within two years of dormancy.

2.      State or State Agency Judgments.

Judgments made by the state or a state agency do not become dormant, which means they maintain their enforceability. A valid abstract of judgment can establish a lien that lasts for 20 years from the filing date, and the lien can be renewed for another 20 years by filing a renewed abstract of judgment.

3.      Political Subdivisions.

Judgments of political subdivisions may become inactive under dormancy statutes, but the political subdivision can revive the judgment at any time using the revival statute, Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 31.006. Thus, the political subdivision is not precluded by the statute of limitations from reviving the judgment beyond the two-year dormancy period.

4.      Child Support Judgments.

The exception to the dormancy statute for child support judgments is outlined in Subsection (c) of § 34.001 of the Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code and applies to all such judgments, irrespective of when they were granted.

Property Subject to and Exempt from Execution.

1.      Property Subject to Execution.

The execution has the right to levy the judgment debtor’s property unless it is exempted by the constitution, statute, or any other legal rule. Typically, the following types of property are not exempted: a. Cash on hand or in checking or savings accounts; b. Pleasure boats and their motors and trailers; c. Collections of items such as stamps, coins, etc.; d. Investments like stocks, bonds, or notes; e. f. Airplanes. Corporations do not have any exempt property.

2.      Property Exempt from Execution.

There are several categories of property that are exempt from execution for a family or a single adult, including a. the homestead, b. personal property specified by law with a total value of up to $100,000 for families and $50,000 for single adults, c. current wages and unpaid commissions up to 25% of the $50/$100,000 limit (excluding child support payments), d. health aids prescribed by professionals, e. worker’s compensation payments, f. cemetery lots used for sepulchers, g. sold, mortgaged, or conveyed property if the purchaser, mortgagee, or trustee can point out other property belonging to the debtor that can satisfy the execution, h. assets with the trustee of a spendthrift trust for the debtor’s benefit, i. certain insurance and savings benefits, such as retirement benefits and health savings plans, j. college savings plans, and k. certain consigned artwork.

WRITS OF GARNISHMENT.

To determine if a third party owes any funds or property to the judgment debtor, a judgment creditor can use the post-judgment garnishment procedure. If any debts are discovered, the creditor (garnishor) can obtain a garnishment judgment, compelling the third party (garnishee) to pay funds to the garnishor instead of the debtor.

Requirements to Issue

To use garnishment following a judgment, certain prerequisites must be met. 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, based on their knowledge, the judgment debtor does not have sufficient property in Texas that can be executed to satisfy the judgment.

Procedure for Securing Issuance Jurisdiction and parties

When pursuing post-judgment garnishment, keep in mind that it is a distinct legal action from the main case it intends to enforce. The third-party garnishee should be named as the defendant, as it is an additional lawsuit. It should be filed in the same court that rendered the judgment for recovery, but with a different cause number.

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

The garnishment action commences by serving the garnishee with the writ of garnishment, and the involvement of the judgment defendant is not required. However, the defendant must be served with a copy of the writ, application, affidavits, and court orders as soon as practical after the garnishee has been served. The copy of the writ served on the defendant must include the contents of the writ in bold 12-point typeface and in a way that is easily understandable for a reasonably attentive person. Failure to give the judgment debtor property notice invalidates any judgment, except one that dissolves the writ.

Banks as Garnishees for Writs of Garnishment

The address designated as the registered agent’s location in the financial institution registration statement under Section 201.102 or 201.103 of the Finance Code is where garnishment writs must be delivered to garnishee banks. Out-of-state financial institutions are required to file a registration application with the Secretary of State, which includes designating an agent for process under Section 201.102, and complying with the state’s foreign corporation laws. 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.

To satisfy the citation regulations, the officer who executes a writ of garnishment must file a return. The judgment creditor should inspect the return before seeking a garnishment judgment, particularly in cases of default judgment, as per Tex. R. Civ. P. 663. Returns in garnishment proceedings must adhere to the same regulations as citations in general. Courts have invalidated returns that do not provide details on how and where a corporate garnishee was served.

Forms for the form and Practical Procedure

In order to garnish a bank account or other debt owed by the judgment debtor, you must locate the account and determine that it is financially viable to pursue. If so, file an Application for Garnishment along with an affidavit signed by the judgment creditor’s attorney, including information such as the original suit and judgment details, the garnishee’s name, officers for service, and service address, as well as any available account names and numbers.

Busby and Associates offers contingency-based help for collecting judgments in Texas. For judgments from other states with the debtor in Texas, they evaluate each case individually and may require a retainer. In Gaines County, they can assist you with garnishing a bank account or financial institution to recover the amount owed.