wage garnishment

[Koda34]

What is the name of your state? Virginia.

Two months ago, my wages were garnished (25%). It turns out I had a default judgement entered against me, that I knew nothing about. I am going to be filling out the exemption form this evening and overnighting it to the courthouse.

My problem, is that I can't find out what this debt is supposedly for. When officers came to my home to survey my property for seizure, they gave me a copy of the judgement, and I contacted the attorney (I know, I shouldn't have called..but I did). He barely knew what the debt is for, and claimed it was for some sort of credit card. I do not believe this is my debt, but I'll deal with that later.

First I'm going to file the Homestead exemption ($5000). Does anyone know how that works? The debt is for almost $10,000. Does the 5k exemption mean they can only collection half of the debt? It's my understanding that the exemption is valid for 90 days. After 90 days, if they re-file the garnishment, can I re-file the exemption?

Oh, and one other question...If I put my mother on my bank account, would they still be able to seize the money in my account? (I'm trying to cover all bases before I submit the exemption papers)

I'm a bit lost, so if anyone could help me and offer advice, I would appreciate it.

[Ladynred]

The exemption goes to EQUITY. If you have more than 5K of equity in your home, then your home is vulnerable to seizure. Its unlikely though, its not an easy process to take your home away from you.

The judgment should list who the plaintiff and the lawyers representing them. If that information is missing, go to the courthouse and get a copy of the case file. In it will be a proof of service. That will tell you when, where, how, and to whom the summons was served.

You would have to keep filing your exemptions as often as they try to execute on the judment - and they can keep doing this as long as the judgment goes unpaid.

Putting you mother on your bank account will do nothing. As long as your name is on an account, they can take the funds.

[Koda34]

Thank you for the reply, Ladynred. I don't own a home, so that isn't an issue (according to the court papers, the homestead exemption applies to any Virginia resident, not just homeowners). I don't have any assets to speak of, but I saw on another website that if they can find a person's bank account, that they can take the money from it (which got me worried).

Thanks!