Can I Garnish a Debtor’s Wages to Satisfy What He/She Owes Me?

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Can I Garnish a Debtor’s Wages to Satisfy What He/She Owes Me?

Many states allow a creditor to garnish the wages of a debtor who has defaulted on his or her loan payments if certain conditions are met. For example, most states limit the amount of a person’s wages which may be garnished and provide wage garnishment exceptions if a debtor’s income is below a certain level. The amount of time during which a debtor’s wages may be garnished may also be limited.

It is important to remember that, in most cases, you must file a lawsuit and have a judicial judgment in order to garnish wages. Also, it may be difficult to garnish the wages of low income debtors, debtors who already have their wages garnished for child support, alimony, tax deficiencies or other creditor claims or debtors who are public employees.

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