In most cases, stocks and brokerage accounts can be garnished by a creditor with a money judgment. However, sometimes a brokerage account may be exempt from garnishment due to federal or state law. Brokerage Garnishment Procedure To garnish a judgment debtor’s stocks or brokerage account, a creditor first files a…
Florida residents that own real or personal property in other states often wonder whether Florida’s generous exemptions from creditors can be asserted in courts located outside of Florida. For example, suppose a judgment debtor has a judgment entered against him in New York. The debtor lives and works in Florida….
No, Florida is not a community property state. In a community property state, any assets acquired by either spouse during the marriage are considered marital property and therefore owned by both spouses. In some community property states, even income earned from pre-marital separate property is still considered community property. Instead,…
A client wanted to know if his employee benefits would be subject to a garnishment. Most judgment debtors do not qualify for a head of household exemption from continuing garnishment of salary and wages provided by Florida Statutes. This particular client asked about whether certain forms of compensation from his…
In Florida, a judgment lasts for 20 years. It can be renewed after the 20 year period, although this is rarely done. Judgments that are not recorded as liens, or are recorded as junior liens, are still valid judgments that can be executed against the debtor’s property. A judgment creditor…
A civil judgment rendered in one state is enforceable in any other state under the concept of “full faith and credit.” The U.S. Constitution provides that each state must give full faith and credit to a civil order issued in another state’s court. For example, a money judgment issued in…
Most creditors understand that if they obtain a money judgment in a state other than Florida the creditor can transfer the judgment to Florida in order to pursue the debtor’s Florida assets. Creditors are often uniformed about how long they have to collect the foreign judgment in Florida. The question…
One of my clients had a judgment entered against him from a business transaction in Florida during a time when he was living in Florida. After the business relationship ended, and after the lawsuit and judgment, my client moved to Canada where he established a new residence. He asked whether…
One of my clients had a judgment issued against him in 2009 in a Georgia civil case. The client retired and moved to Florida in 2016. Upon discovering my client changed residence to Florida move the creditor domesticated the Georgia judgment in Florida in 2016. Georgia law provides that Georgia…
After a car accident, the injured person’s attorney will often request that the at-fault party complete a personal financial affidavit or an affidavit of no other insurance or assets. The liable party can be the at-fault driver or even the owner of the vehicle that the at-fault driver was driving with permission….
