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

If you’re dealing with a judgment collection issue in Jasper County, Texas, Busby & Associates is here to help. Our attorneys have the skills to defend, collect, and enforce judgments, with a focus on garnishing bank accounts and financial institutions. Additionally, we offer legal assistance for consumer bankruptcy, family law, and divorce, and can assist with both collecting and defending against child support liens. Contact us today for a consultation and let us help you collect what you’re owed.

Texas Judgment liens in Jasper County

If you’ve got a judgment lien properly fixed, it can attach to all nonexempt real property of the debtor in Jasper County. The recording and indexing of an abstract of judgment create a judgment lien, which must be filed in every county in which the lien is sought to be fixed. This lien will last for ten years from the time of recordation and indexing if the judgment does not become dormant. The lien will only apply to a final judgment and not an interlocutory one. If a judgment is being appealed or a supersedeas bond has been filed, an abstract may be filed on a final judgment. If a judgment creditor has taken the necessary steps to obtain a lien before the judgment is appealed, an appeal will not destroy the effect of such steps in the event of affirmation. These regulations are applicable to Texas state trial court judgments, but not to the enforcement of foreign judgments in other states, which necessitate first domesticating in Texas to create a lien, and then perhaps abstracting such judgment upon completion of the domestication process.

Texas Abstract of Judgment

In Texas, when it comes to abstracting a judgment lien, the judge, justice of the peace, clerk of the court, judgment creditor, his agent, attorney, or assignee may prepare the abstract of judgment. However, if the judgment was rendered in a small claims or justice court, the judgment creditor cannot prepare their own abstract. Additionally, certificates from the clerk of the court are required for abstracts of federal court judgments. If you need to abstract your judgment lien in Jasper County, Texas, you can do so at the County Clerk’s office located at 121 N Austin St # 103, Jasper, Texas 75951.

Contents

In order to be valid, a Texas abstract of judgment needs to provide the following information: the names of the plaintiff and defendant; the defendant’s birthdate, if the clerk of justice has it; the last three digits of the defendant’s driver’s license and social security numbers, if available; the number of the suit in which the judgment was rendered; the defendant’s address or the nature of citation, date and place of service of citation if the address is not included in the suit; the date of the judgment; the amount of the judgment and the balance due; any child support arrearage balance; the interest rate specified in the judgment; and the mailing address for each plaintiff or judgment creditor. If the abstract is missing any of this information, a penalty filing fee will be imposed. Note that any abstract of judgment created by the plaintiff’s attorney must be verified and notarized.

Recordation of Judgment Liens Abstract

Jasper County is the designated location for recording the abstract of judgment when the debtor has real property there. The Jasper County clerk receives the abstract and enters it into the county’s real property records, noting the date and time of recording. Additionally, the clerk must list the abstract in the alphabetical index to the real property records, providing the names of both the plaintiff and defendant and the page number where the abstract is stored.

Abstracts of Domesticated Judgment Liens.

The Uniform Enforcement of Foreign Judgments Act and the Uniform Foreign-Country Money Judgments Recognition Act establish that foreign judgments can be enforced in Texas in the same way as judgments filed in the originating court. To domesticate a foreign judgment in Texas, the foreign judgment holder must comply with the lien requirements.

Property To Which Lien Attaches Non-Exempt Real Property

The judgment lien attaches to all nonexempt real property owned by the defendant in Jasper County, which is the county of recordation.

Keeping the Judgment and Judgment Lien Alive

1.      Non-governmental Judgments

After recording and indexing an abstract, a judgment lien remains valid for ten years unless it becomes dormant. To keep the lien active, the judgment must remain active, and a new abstract of judgment must be recorded. A judgment becomes dormant if a writ of execution is not issued within ten years of its rendition, but it can be revived through scire facias or an action of debt filed within two years of dormancy.

2.      State or State Agency Judgments.

State or state agency judgments do not lose their enforcement power and remain active for the entire duration of the lien. A valid abstract of judgment establishes a lien that lasts for 20 years from the date of filing, and the lien’s duration can be extended for another 20 years by filing a renewed abstract of judgment.

3.      Political Subdivisions.

Dormancy statutes can cause political subdivisions’ judgments to become inactive, but the revival statute, Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 31.006, authorizes political subdivisions to revive the judgment at any time. As a result, the political subdivision is not barred by the statute of limitations and can revive the judgment even beyond the two-year dormancy period.

4.      Child Support Judgments.

• 34.001 Subsection (c) of the Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code establishes a provision that excludes judgments related to child support from the dormancy statute, covering all such judgments regardless of their date of rendering.

Property Subject to and Exempt from Execution.

1.      Property Subject to Execution.

Unless it is exempted by the constitution, statute, or any other legal rule, the execution has the power to seize the judgment debtor’s property. In general, 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 such as stamps, coins, etc.; d. Investments such as stocks, bonds, or notes; e. f. Airplanes. Corporations have no protected property.

2.      Property Exempt from Execution.

The law states that the following types of property are protected from seizure: a) the family’s primary residence, b) various personal properties listed in the statutes up to a total value of $100,000 for families or $50,000 for single adults, c) a quarter of the total amount protected by the statutes in unpaid commissions and wages for personal services, except for child support payments, d) health aids prescribed by a professional, e) worker’s compensation benefits, f) cemetery lots used for burial purposes, g) property sold, mortgaged, or entrusted by the debtor, provided the purchaser or trustee can identify other debtor property of equal value, h) assets held in trust for the benefit of the debtor by a spendthrift trustee, i) certain types of insurance benefits, and j) certain savings plans, including retirement and health savings plans, k) college savings plans, and l) artwork consigned under certain conditions.

WRITS OF GARNISHMENT.

The post-judgment garnishment allows a judgment creditor to explore the connection between a third party and the judgment debtor to determine if there are any outstanding debts or property owed. If any debts are found, the creditor (garnishor) can obtain a garnishment judgment, ordering the third party (garnishee) to pay funds to the garnishor instead of the debtor.

Requirements to Issue

The use of garnishment after a judgment requires specific conditions to be 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 suspend execution on the judgment. Finally, the creditor must confirm that, based on their knowledge, the judgment debtor does not have sufficient property subject to execution in Texas to fulfill the judgment.

Procedure for Securing Issuance Jurisdiction and parties

A post-judgment garnishment action is a separate legal proceeding from the main case it aims to enforce. The third-party garnishee should be named as the defendant as it is an ancillary lawsuit. It should be filed in the same court that issued the judgment to be collected, but with a different cause number, when applying for post-judgment garnishment.

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

The writ of garnishment must be served on the garnishee to initiate the garnishment action. While the defendant in judgment is not a necessary party to the action, they must be provided with a copy of the writ, application, affidavits, and court orders as soon as practicable after the garnishee is served. The defendant must receive a copy of the writ that contains its contents in 12-point typeface, in a manner that is likely to alert an attentive person. Failure to give proper notice to the defendant renders any judgment, except for one that dissolves the writ, null and void.

Banks as Garnishees for Writs of Garnishment

To deliver garnishment writs to garnishee banks, the address designated as the registered agent of the financial institution in its registration statement under Section 201.102 or 201.103 of the Finance Code must be used. Out-of-state financial institutions must apply for registration with the Secretary of State and comply with the state’s foreign corporation laws, which require the appointment of an agent for process under Section 201.102. In contrast, Texas financial institutions have the option to appoint an agent for process by submitting a statement to the Secretary of State under Section 201.103.

Officer’s Return.

The officer tasked with executing a writ of garnishment is obliged to provide a return that adheres to the citation guidelines, as specified in Tex. R. Civ. P. 663. The judgment creditor should carefully review the return before seeking a garnishment judgment, particularly if it is a default judgment. Returns in garnishment proceedings must conform to the same regulations as citations in general. Courts have invalidated returns that do not specify the method and place of service on a corporate garnishee.

Forms for the form and Practical Procedure

In the event that you locate a bank account or another debt owed by the judgment debtor that can be garnished and it is feasible to pursue it, file an Application for Garnishment with a supporting affidavit that is signed by the judgment creditor’s attorney. The affidavit must provide essential information such as the original suit and judgment information, the garnishee’s name, officers for service, service address, and any available account names and numbers.

Busby and Associates offer contingency-based services to help you collect your Texas judgment without any upfront fees. For judgments from other states with the debtor in Texas, they evaluate each case individually and may require a retainer. In Jasper County, they can also assist you in garnishing a bank account or financial institution to recover the amount owed.