If bankruptcy is not an option for you and the judgment is older than 2 years, the only real option you have is to respect/settle the judgment. Until you are able to do so, do everything you can to frustrate the ability of judgment believers to apply judgment. For example, don`t leave your money in the bank to be tied up. Again, Fitzgerald Campbell can advise and help you on what you can and cannot do to avoid enforcement of judgments. Settling in can be a win-win situation. The creditor receives at least one partial payment of the debt – although he usually requires it in the form of a lump sum. You pay less and avoid a long wage garnishment. The creditor submits a ”satisfaction of the judgment” to the court. Maybe you weren`t served properly. Contact the courthouse and see what the file says about the service.
If you were misreserved, you could have the judgment set aside. The courthouse will charge you a small fee to send you copies, or you can leave in person. Some now offer their records online. The court will not collect the money for the creditor. But the court will issue the orders and other documents necessary to force you (the debtor) to pay. Can we hear a verdict or, as they say, has this train left the station? A judgment can be negotiated in Texas, and a debtor can agree to pay a judgment debt for less, even after it has been issued by a court. For a creditor, a little money, even if it is a small amount, is better than no money or the potential bankruptcy of the debtor (which is often as good as no money). The best option is to draft a settlement agreement and have it signed by both parties before payments are made. Among the most important conditions for the concordat agreement are: A creditor can agree to pay the judgment for less than you owe. This usually happens when the creditor thinks you could declare bankruptcy and write off the debt that way.
If you never received a collection notice or if you did not receive notice from the court before the lawsuit, the collection agent may have violated your rights as a consumer. You may have reason to challenge the judgment. Read on to find out how to do this. Be sure to always check your SOL for debt when you have been served, because if it has expired (and many debts expire in 4-6 years), you can use it to reject the case. Many debtors are served every day for debts and they simply do not appear in court and a default judgment is rendered against them – big mistake! If half of them had simply checked their SOL, they would have found that the debt could have expired years earlier, but since they did not deny it, the verdict was pronounced. You can use an expired SOL as a solid defense in court against a creditor/collector to stop a verdict. Are you dealing with a judgment? Learn how to remove, reject or challenge it from your credit reports, or expel it from a judgement creditor. Money judgments covered. The lien on real estate generally does not imply that the sale of the property is forced to comply with the judgment.
You should try to resolve the judgment before selling the home (negotiating an agreement before listing it if possible) or refinancing (billing before a lender takes out a firm loan is often preferable). The first step is to carefully review the decision, which is essentially an order from a Texas court. If you do not have a copy of the judgment, in most cases you can contact the county where the judgment was rendered or the court itself. Debtors and creditors should review both the court`s decision to determine the total amount due and any specific payment instructions ordered by the court. One of the most important tools the creditor can use to collect from you is a wage garnishment. If the creditor has received a court ruling that you have money, they can file documents to seize (take or hold) part of your paycheck in order to pay off your debts. Once this is done, you will receive a copy of a detention decision (Form WG-002). But the creditor will be limited in the amount he can take. Typically, about 25% of your salary is withheld to take away, but the creditor can`t take the portion of your paycheck you need to support yourself and your loved ones.
For more information, see the employee instructions (Form WG-003) you received from your employer. Click here if you are an employer and have received a garnishment order for an employee. Many financial companies and banks have collapsed over the past decade. These could be removed because there is no way to deny them. Maybe you served overseas and should never have been prosecuted under the Soldiers and Sailors Act…
