Palm Desert Bankruptcy Lawyer Christopher Hewitt Home
Decades of Experience,
Dedicated to YouContact Us NowFor a Free Initial Consultation
Wage Garnishment
Bankruptcy can stop your wage garnishment.
The following types of debt can be discharged and stop the garnishing of your wages.
Duration and Termination of Wage Garnishment
Typically, the garnishment will last until the debtor pays off the total debt to the creditor, including principal amounts and interest. If the garnishment becomes dormant for long, the order may be subject to termination according to state law. Some garnishments may contain automatic clauses stipulating termination after a certain time frame or under specific conditions. In contrast, others can be subject to periodic review to ensure continued compliance with legal limits.
At the Law Office of Christopher Hewitt branches in Orange and Riverside Counties, we take wage garnishment cases very seriously and file them as soon as possible to stop the garnishment and potentially seek payment for garnishments that occurred in the last 90 days.
How Wage Garnishment Works
Wage garnishment in California is a legal process where the employer withholds a portion of an employee's earnings to pay off a debt or obligation. Governed by the California Code of Civil Procedure, this law provides a structured framework for enforcing monetary judgments, ensuring a balance between creditors' rights and debtors' financial well-being. Contact a lawyer immediately if you receive a letter from our employer stating that your employer will withhold a partial amount of your earnings. Under this law, the most that can be taken from a person's earnings each week through a wage garnishment order is either 20% of their take-home pay for that week or 40% of the amount that their take-home pay is above 48 times the state or local minimum hourly wage, whichever is less. For pay periods that are not weekly, like daily, every two weeks, twice a month, or monthly, there are different calculations using multiples of the minimum hourly wage (96, 104, and 208 hours, respectively). This rule starts on September 1, 2023. As these calculations are relatively complicated, getting advice from a Riverside bankruptcy attorney is advisable.
Wage Garnishment Process
If you have a debt and a creditor has a monetary judgment against you, default or otherwise, they can request an earning withheld order from the court. This request will ask the court to allow them to garnish earnings from your job to repay the debt that you owe to them. Once the creditor files the appropriate forms and pays a fee, The court will issue an earning withholding order directed to the debtor's employer. The order will instruct your employer to hold some of the debtor's earnings. The employer is obligated to notify the debtor of the wage garnishment. When you receive this notification from your employer, it may be a good time to contact a bankruptcy attorney to find out your options to stop the garnishment of your salary. The employer will then begin withholding earnings based on the court order. Every month, the debtor's employer will send these withheld earrings to the levying officer, usually the sheriff or marshal. The garnishment will continue until the debt is paid off, the employment ends, or when the order is terminated. If the employment ends, the employer is required to notify the levying officer. The levying officer will be responsible for receiving and accounting the payments toward the debt owed and reporting to the court.
Wage Garnishment Restrictions
Apart from support orders your employer has received, your employer cannot withhold employees' wages for debt payments through any means except what is prescribed by the order. Another important restriction is that the withholding orders can’t be issued against your spouse without explicit court approval.
Bankruptcy can stop Wage Garnishment
Even if you are a high-income earner and don't qualify for Chapter 7, doing Chapter 13 could considerably lower the percentage of debt you pay back. When you file for bankruptcy, an Automatic Stay is immediately issued, stopping Wage Garnishment immediately.
Even if you are a high-income earner and don't qualify for Chapter 7, doing Chapter 13 could considerably lower the percentage of debt you pay back. When you file for bankruptcy, an Automatic Stay is immediately issued, stopping Wage Garnishment immediately.
- Credit Card Debt
- Auto Loan Defaults
- Medical Bills
- Payday loans and other storefront loans
Priority for Wage Garnishments
California prioritizes family-related wage garnishment over other types, including child and spousal support, which are given the top priority. If you do not have family financial obligations, the IRS or State Tax revenue departments and creditors for debts related to financial abuse take priority in wage garnishment, with other types of debts considered afterward.
Challenging Wage Garnishment
To challenge a wage garnishment, you file a "Claim of exemption" to the Levying Officer; do not file it with the court. To file a Claim of Exemption, complete certain forms (Claim of Exemption form WG-006 and Financial Statement form WG-007/EJ-165) and submit them to the Levying Officer. The debt collector has the right to oppose the claim, leading to a court hearing where you must prove the wage garnishment may impair your ability to meet your family's basic needs.
Duration and Termination of Wage Garnishment
Typically, the garnishment will last until the debtor pays off the total debt to the creditor, including principal amounts and interest. If the garnishment becomes dormant for long, the order may be subject to termination according to state law. Some garnishments may contain automatic clauses stipulating termination after a certain time frame or under specific conditions. In contrast, others can be subject to periodic review to ensure continued compliance with legal limits.
