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

Collecting a judgment in Jefferson County, Texas, can be complicated, but Busby & Associates can help make the process smoother. Our attorneys are skilled in defending, collecting, and enforcing judgments, including garnishing bank accounts and financial institutions. We also offer legal support 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 Jefferson County

A judgment lien correctly established will serve as a lien on all nonexempt real property of the judgment debtor in Jefferson County. A judgment lien is formed by appropriately recording and indexing an abstract of judgment, which must be filed in every county where the lien is to be fixed. The lien will continue for ten years from the time of recording and indexing if the judgment does not become dormant. The judgment on which the lien is based must be a final judgment, not an interlocutory one. An abstract may be filed on a final judgment that is being appealed or on which a supersedeas bond has been filed. If a judgment creditor has taken the required measures to obtain a lien before the judgment is appealed, the fact of appeal will not undermine the impact of such measures if the judgment is affirmed. These provisions relate to Texas state trial court judgments and not to the implementation of judgments from other states or nations, for which you must first domesticate in Texas to establish a lien and then abstract the judgment after the domestication procedure is finished.

Texas Abstract of Judgment

The state of Texas allows several parties to prepare the abstract of judgment for judgments rendered in most courts, including the judge, justice of the peace, clerk of the court, judgment creditor, his agent, attorney, or assignee. However, if the judgment was rendered in a small claims or justice court, the judgment creditor cannot prepare their own abstract. Abstracts of federal court judgments require the certificate of the clerk of the court. If you need to abstract your judgment lien in Jefferson County, Texas, you can do so at the County Clerk’s office located at 1085 Pearl St # 203, Beaumont, Texas 77701.

Contents

An abstract of judgment in Texas must contain the following details: the names of both the plaintiff and defendant; the defendant’s birthdate, if available to the clerk of justice; the last three digits of the defendant’s driver’s license and social security numbers, if available; the number of the lawsuit in which the judgment was rendered; the defendant’s address or, if the address is not available in the lawsuit, the nature of citation and the date and place of service of citation; the date on which the judgment was rendered; the amount of the judgment and the balance due; any child support arrearage balance; and the interest rate specified in the judgment. The abstract must also provide the mailing address for each plaintiff or judgment creditor, and if it does not, a penalty filing fee will be imposed. Additionally, any abstract of judgment prepared by the plaintiff’s attorney must be verified and notarized.

Recordation of Judgment Liens Abstract

The recording of the abstract of judgment is required in Jefferson County when the debtor owns real property there. The Jefferson County clerk records the abstract in the county’s real property records, stating the date and time of documentation. Moreover, the clerk must include the abstract in the alphabetical index to the real property records, showing the names of 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 allow foreign judgments to be enforced with the same level of enforceability as judgments filed in the originating court. To domesticate a foreign judgment in Texas, the foreign judgment holder must satisfy the lien requirements.

Property To Which Lien Attaches Non-Exempt Real Property

The defendant’s nonexempt real property in Jefferson County, as recorded in the county, is subject to the judgment lien, which applies to all properties.

Keeping the Judgment and Judgment Lien Alive

1.      Non-governmental Judgments

To maintain a judgment lien, it is necessary to keep the judgment active and record a new abstract of judgment within ten years of the original recording and indexing. If a judgment becomes dormant, the lien ends, but it can be revived by scire facias or by an action of debt filed within two years of dormancy.

2.      State or State Agency Judgments.

Judgments issued by the state or a state agency remain enforceable and do not become dormant. A properly filed abstract of judgment can create a lien that lasts for 20 years from the filing date, and the lien’s lifespan can be renewed for an additional 20 years by filing a renewed abstract of judgment, ensuring its validity for a total of 40 years.

3.      Political Subdivisions.

While judgments of political subdivisions can go inactive under dormancy statutes, the revival statute, Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 31.006, enables political subdivisions to revive the judgment at any time. Therefore, the political subdivision is not restricted by the statute of limitations and can revive the judgment beyond the two-year dormancy period.

4.      Child Support Judgments.

The provision in § 34.001 Subsection (c) of the Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code creates an exception for child support judgments from the dormancy statute and applies to all such judgments, regardless of when they were granted or issued.

Property Subject to and Exempt from Execution.

1.      Property Subject to Execution.

Execution may take the judgment debtor’s property, unless it is exempted by the constitution, statute, or any other legal rule. Generally, 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 such as stocks, bonds, or notes; e. f. Airplanes. Corporations have no protected property.

2.      Property Exempt from Execution.

The law specifies that the following types of property are exempt from legal seizure, whether for an individual or family: a) their primary residence, b) personal properties listed in the law that add up to a total value of $100,000 for families or $50,000 for individuals, c) unpaid wages or commissions for personal services, up to a quarter of the combined $50,000 or $100,000 limits, except for child support payments, d) professionally recommended health aids, e) worker’s compensation benefits, f) cemetery lots held for the purpose of burial, g) property that the debtor sold, mortgaged, or transferred in trust, as long as the buyer or trustee identifies other debtor property of equal value, h) assets under the control of a spendthrift trustee for the debtor’s benefit, i) specific types of insurance benefits, j) certain savings plans, such as retirement and health savings plans, k) college savings plans, and l) artwork consigned under specific circumstances.

WRITS OF GARNISHMENT.

The post-judgment garnishment process empowers a judgment creditor to examine the relationship between a third party and the judgment debtor to determine if any outstanding debts or property are owed. 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

Specific requirements must be met before garnishment can be utilized after a judgment. Firstly, the creditor must have 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 attest that, based on their knowledge, the judgment debtor does not have sufficient property in Texas subject to execution to fulfill the judgment.

Procedure for Securing Issuance Jurisdiction and parties

When pursuing post-judgment garnishment, keep in mind that it is a separate legal action from the main case it aims to enforce. The third-party garnishee should be named as the defendant since it is an ancillary lawsuit. It should be filed in the same court that delivered the judgment to be collected, but with a different cause number.

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

The garnishment action is initiated by serving the writ of garnishment on the garnishee. The defendant in judgment is not a necessary party to the action, but they must be served with a copy of the writ, application, affidavits, and court orders as soon as feasible after the garnishee is served. The copy of the writ served to the defendant must include its contents in 12-point typeface, written in a way that will inform a reasonably attentive person. Failure to provide the defendant with appropriate notice of the writ’s contents makes any judgment, except the one that dissolves the writ, null and void.

Banks as Garnishees for Writs of Garnishment

The registered agent address specified in the financial institution’s registration statement under Section 201.102 or 201.103 of the Finance Code must be used for the delivery of garnishment writs to garnishee banks. Out-of-state financial institutions must file an application 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 may appoint an agent for process by submitting a statement to the Secretary of State under Section 201.103.

Officer’s Return.

Tex. R. Civ. P. 663 mandates that the officer who executes a writ of garnishment must submit a return that satisfies the citation rules. It is recommended for the judgment creditor to scrutinize the return closely before pursuing a garnishment judgment, particularly if it is a default judgment. Returns in garnishment proceedings must adhere to the same regulations as citations in general. Courts have dismissed returns that do not reveal the method and place of service on a corporate garnishee.

Forms for the form and Practical Procedure

If you find a bank account or another debt owed by the judgment debtor that can be garnished and it is financially practical to pursue it, submit an Application for Garnishment with a supporting affidavit signed by the judgment creditor’s attorney. The affidavit must contain critical information such as the original suit and judgment details, the garnishee’s name, officers for service, service address, and any available account names and numbers.

If you’re having trouble collecting a judgment in Texas, Busby and Associates can provide contingency-based services to help. You only pay if they recover the amount owed. For judgments from other states with the debtor in Texas, they evaluate each case individually and may require a retainer. In Jefferson County, they can assist you in garnishing a bank account or financial institution to recover the amount owed.