Garnishment

Clients planning for asset protection sometimes debate whether they should work as an employee or as an independent contractor. Employee wages are subject to a continuing wage garnishment, but the Florida Statute 222.11 clearly exempts wages paid to one who is head of household. Payments to independent contractors may be garnished, but garnishment is more…

One of my clients has a claim against a physician for medical practice, but he also has money judgments against him arising out of commercial foreclosure during the real estate recession. He is considering settling his malpractice claim. He ask whether his judgment creditor can garnish the claims or the proceeds of a settlement. A…

A client called me for assistance dissolving a garnishment of his wages on the grounds that he is head of household in Florida. Florida statutes provide that creditors may not garnish wages of a Florida debtor who is head of household. The garnishment was initiated by a collection agent who had purchased a judgment in…

An attorney called me about one of their clients who is being forced to file Chapter 7 bankruptcy because his wages were garnished. The attorney said that the client supported an adult child living at home. The attorney asked whether the judge properly denied the debtor’s head of household wage exemption and whether wages held…

You would think that debtors’ accounts at a national bank such as BOA or Wells Fargo may be garnished in any state where the bank maintains a branch. I expect most Florida courts would agree, and Florida judges would permit creditors to garnish accounts of Florida debtors held at national banks regardless of whether the…

A young attorney practicing in northern Florida wrote me to say that his wages were being garnished by the Department of Education to collect his law school student loans. The Department had not filed suit to collect the loan. He wants to know how they can garnish his wages without having procured first a money…

Florida’s wage garnishment law is brief, but it can be complicated. I find that some people misunderstand the wage garnishment issues expressed in the Statute. A client asked me if there is a $750 limit on the amount a judgment creditor can take from his wages.

I would like to clarify the head of household exemption from wage garnishment. To often, clients assert during our consultations that they know their wages cannot be garnished because they are “head of household.” It’s not that simple because debtors can waiver their head of household protection in writing.

Many callers who have read my website discussions of wage garnishment have learned that Florida law prohibits the garnishment of wages earned by a debtor who is head of household. Many people mistakenly believe the wage garnishment exemption for head of household debtors is automatic.