If I am being sued in a civil case, can my salary be garnished without a court ruling?

Get Legal Help Today

Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save

secured lock Secured with SHA-256 Encryption

If I am being sued in a civil case, can my salary be garnished without a court ruling?

I lived in an apartment 10 years ago and been receiving notices that I am being sued for breaking the lease. Also received a notice at work for employment verification.

Asked on November 28, 2011 under Bankruptcy Law, Georgia

Answers:

S.L,. Member, California Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 12 years ago | Contributor

There will need to be a court judgment against you in order for there to be a wage garnishment.  The wage garnishment is to enforce the court judgment.  

If you have not been served by a process server with the summons and complaint (complaint is the lawsuit attached to the summons), there isn't any lawsuit yet.  When you are served with the summons and complaint, you will need to file an answer to the complaint with the court and serve it by mail on the opposing party.  The statute of limitations may have expired since ten years have elapsed.  You could argue this as a defense to bar the lawsuit.  If the lawsuit was filed and served upon you and you did not file an answer to the complaint within the time set forth in the summons and serve it by mail on the opposing party, the opposing party can get a default judgment against you.  This means you have lost by default for failing to timely respond by filing your answer to the complaint. If that happened, there may be a wage garnishment to enforce the judgment against you.  If a default judgment was entered against you, you will need to file a motion to set aside the default.  If the court grants your motion, the case is back on track and litigation will continue.  Again, your answer to the complaint denies the allegations in the complaint and if applicable, you should assert the affirmative defense of the statute of limitations.  If the other party missed the statute of limitations, the lawsuit will be barred.


IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.

Get Legal Help Today

Find the right lawyer for your legal issue.

secured lock Secured with SHA-256 Encryption