What happens to my wage garnishment when I file for bankruptcy?
If you fall behind on debt payments, eventually the creditor will probably try to garnish your wages or bank account. A garnishment is a court order that requires an employer or a bank to turn over money that they are holding to the creditor. First the creditor must get a judgment against you for the money due. A bankruptcy stops this process cold at any point along the way. If you are already being garnished, you may be able to recover any money taken from your pay check in the last 60 days.
Our Auburn wage garnishment attorneys are here to help. We understand. A garnishment should not come out of nowhere. First the creditor will write letters demanding payment. If these letters are ignored or payment is not made, then the creditor will hire a law firm and file a lawsuit. The lawsuit is started by personally serving a summons and complaint – a process server must hand deliver it to you or someone who lives with you at your residence. You have 20 days to answer the complaint.
If you do not, the creditor can get a default judgment and soon after that get a writ of garnishment. You should provide some answer, which is fairly easy, if you are served with a summons so the creditor at least has to give you a day in court. A creditor can garnish up to 25% of your take home pay. A good bankruptcy attorneys knows how to stop a qualifying client's wage garnishment immediately. And, there are very, very few instances where our Auburn bankruptcy lawyers are unable to do so. We know the state and federal bankruptcy laws. And, we know the debt collection laws and practices here in Washington State. We will fight to protect your legal rights when it comes to your paycheck.
Though sometimes errors are made and a garnishment does come out of nowhere, you should have plenty of warning. If you are overwhelmed by debt, you should start looking into bankruptcy well before the garnishment hits. A garnishment can make it very difficult to hire a lawyer, pay all the necessary fees and collect all the information you need to file a bankruptcy case. However, many people do file bankruptcy after the garnishment hits. If you have already been hit with a garnishment, you need to get with one of our Auburn wage garnishment attorneys immediately.