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Jones County, Anson, Texas

Jones County

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

 

Don’t let a debtor in Jones County, Texas, get away with not paying a judgment. Busby & Associates can assist you with collecting what you’re owed. Our experienced attorneys are skilled in defending, collecting, and enforcing judgments, including garnishing bank accounts and financial institutions. We also provide legal support for consumer bankruptcy, family law, and divorce, and can assist with both collecting and defending against child support liens. Contact us today to schedule a consultation and start the process of collecting what you’re owed.

Texas Judgment liens in Jones County

When a judgment lien is properly fixed, it serves as a lien on all nonexempt real property of the judgment debtor in Jones County. To create a judgment lien, an abstract of judgment must be recorded and indexed correctly. The abstract must be filed in every county where the lien is being established. The lien continues for ten years from the date of recordation and indexing unless the judgment becomes dormant. The judgment used to establish the lien must be final and not interlocutory. If the judgment is being appealed, or if a supersedeas bond has been filed, an abstract can still be filed on a final judgment. If a lien is obtained before the judgment is appealed, the effect of the lien will remain even if the judgment is affirmed. These rules only apply to Texas state trial court judgments, not to judgments from other states or foreign countries. To establish a lien on such judgments, you must first domesticate them in Texas before filing an abstract of judgment.

Texas Abstract of Judgment

The Texas law permits judges, justices of the peace, clerks of the court, or the judgment creditor, his agent, attorney, or assignee to prepare an abstract of judgment for all courts except small claims and justice courts. In such courts, the judgment creditor is not authorized to prepare their own abstract. Additionally, federal court judgment abstracts require the clerk of the court’s certification. If you want to abstract your judgment lien in Jones County, Texas, you can do so at the County Clerk’s office located at 1132 W Court Plaza, Anson, Texas 79501.

Contents

For a Texas abstract of judgment to be valid, it must present the following information: the names of the plaintiff and defendant, the birthdate of the defendant (if accessible to the court), and the last three digits of the defendant’s driver’s license and social security number (if known). It must also contain the suit number in which the judgment was granted, the defendant’s address or citation nature, and date and location of citation if the address is not available. Additionally, the date of the judgment, the total judgment amount, the remaining balance, any child support arrearage, and the interest rate specified in the judgment must be included. It must also contain the mailing address of each plaintiff or judgment creditor; otherwise, a penalty filing fee will be applied. Furthermore, the abstract produced by the creditor’s lawyer must be verified, and unsworn declarations are unacceptable.

 

Recordation of Judgment Liens Abstract

In Jones County, the abstract of judgment must be registered if the debtor owns real property there. The Jones County clerk receives the abstract and enters it into the county’s real property records, noting the date and time of documentation. The clerk must also list the abstract in the alphabetical index to the real property records, providing the names of both the plaintiff and defendant in the judgment and the page number where the abstract is recorded.

Abstracts of Domesticated Judgment Liens.

Judgments filed under the Uniform Enforcement of Foreign Judgments Act and the Uniform Foreign-Country Money Judgments Recognition Act have the same enforceability as judgments filed in the court of origin. The lien requirements must be met by the foreign judgment holder to domesticate the judgment in Texas.

Property To Which Lien Attaches Non-Exempt Real Property

The defendant’s nonexempt real property recorded in Jones County is affected by the judgment lien, which encompasses all properties.

Keeping the Judgment and Judgment Lien Alive

1.      Non-governmental Judgments

A judgment lien remains active for ten years after being recorded and indexed in an abstract, after which it becomes dormant if a writ of execution is not issued. To keep the lien active, the judgment must also remain active and a new abstract of judgment must be recorded. Dormant judgments can be revived by scire facias or an action of debt filed within two years of dormancy.

2.      State or State Agency Judgments.

The enforceability of state or state agency judgments does not become dormant and remains valid for the entire duration of the lien. An abstract of judgment that has been filed properly creates a lien that lasts for up to 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.

Political subdivisions’ judgments may become dormant due to dormancy statutes, but the revival statute, Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 31.006, allows political subdivisions to revive the judgment at any time. Hence, 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.

All child support judgments are exempted from the dormancy statute by § 34.001 Subsection (c) of the Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code, which applies to all such judgments irrespective 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 can seize the judgment debtor’s property. 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 like stamps, coins, etc.; d. Investments such as stocks, bonds, or notes; e. f. Airplanes. Corporations have no exempt property.

2.      Property Exempt from Execution.

The following types of property are exempt from execution, regardless of whether the debtor is a single adult or a family: a) the homestead, b) personal property from different categories that are specified by law, with a combined fair market value of up to $100,000.00 for families or $50,000.00 for single adults, c) current wages for personal services (excluding child support payments) and unpaid commissions for personal services, limited to 25% of the $50,000/$100,000 combined limitations, d) professionally recommended health aids, e) workers’ compensation payments, f) cemetery plots held for burial purposes, g) property sold, mortgaged, or transferred into trust by the judgment debtor if the purchaser, mortgagee, or trustee identifies other debtor property sufficient to satisfy the judgment, h) assets held by the trustee of a spendthrift trust for the benefit of the judgment debtor, i) certain insurance benefits, j) specific savings plans, including retirement benefits and health savings plans, k) college savings plans, and l) particular consigned artwork.

Jones County

 

WRITS OF GARNISHMENT.

A judgment creditor can employ the post-judgment garnishment procedure to examine the connection between a third party and the judgment debtor to determine if any outstanding debts or property are 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

Garnishment after a judgment is only feasible if specific requirements are met. 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 confirm that, based on their knowledge, the judgment debtor does not have enough property in Texas that can be executed to fulfill the judgment.

Procedure for Securing Issuance Jurisdiction and parties

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

 

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. 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 possible after the garnishee is served. The copy of the writ served to the defendant must include its contents in 12-point typeface and must be written in a manner that informs a reasonably attentive person. Any judgment, except the one that dissolves the writ, is void if proper notice is not given to the defendant.

Banks as Garnishees for Writs of Garnishment

Delivery of garnishment writs to garnishee banks requires the use of the address specified as the registered agent of the financial institution in its registration statement under Section 201.102 or 201.103 of the Finance Code. 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. On the other hand, 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 officer in charge of executing a writ of garnishment must provide a return that adheres to the citation guidelines, as set forth in Tex. R. Civ. P. 663. It is recommended that the judgment creditor inspect the return thoroughly prior to seeking a garnishment judgment, particularly if it is a default judgment. Returns in garnishment proceedings are subject 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

If you find a bank account or another debt owed by the judgment debtor that can be garnished, and it is determined to be financially feasible, then file an Application for Garnishment along with a supporting affidavit that is signed by the judgment creditor’s attorney. The affidavit should include crucial 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.

Are you struggling to collect your judgment in Texas? Busby and Associates can help with their contingency-based services that only require payment 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 Jones County, they can also assist you in garnishing a bank account or financial institution to recover the amount owed.

 

 

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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.