Can a person’s paycheck be garnished by more than one court order?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
Can a person’s paycheck be garnished by more than one court order?
My weekly paychecks are currently being garnished from a Fannie Mae student loan I applied for many years ago. I agree I owe the debt and I’m OK with the garnishment. Today, I received a letter from another lawyer stating they are also going to start garnishing my paychecks. This was from another unrelated loan I received many years ago. The first garnishment is currently deducting 15% from each paycheck. The second court order says they will garnish 25% from each paycheck. I absolutely agree I owe these debts but I can’t imaging surviving when I may lose 40% of each paycheck.
Asked on January 7, 2012 under Bankruptcy Law, Indiana
Answers:
FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
Yes, more than one different judgment creditor can garnish a judgment debtor's paycheck. You need to understand that there is a maximum amount that can be garnsihed upon per paycheck of a person's net monthly check. Typically the maximum amount is 25%.
In your situation, if there will be more than one judgment creditor after your paychecks, you will need to file a petition with the court naming both judgment creditors on the proof of service seeking a maximum amount that can be levied upon where the court orders each specific judgment creditor a certain percentage of your net paycheck so that you can at least live on your earnings.
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.