Can filing bankruptcy stop a wage garnishment?

Submitted by smoore597 on Fri, 03/16/2007 - 03:51
Forums
Credit repair

I got a call from cash call who has threatened Wage garnishment and when I told them I was filing they said that unless I it is completed before I'm served, the bk will not stop the garnishment. Is this true? She suggested I make a $200 payment to avoid being served and that would buy me 30 days. Are they just trying to take my money? I dont really have the money to pay them AND pay the filing fee of $300!

elina (not verified)

Garnishment continues until bankruptcy is files. After it is filed the attorney gets the authority to remove wage garnishment. After bankruptcy is filed, the bankruptcy court will issue an order to prohibit garnishing of any of your assets including wages and income tax refunds.

Sun, 03/18/2007 - 02:50 Permalink
Mary

Yes, if you file a bankruptcy the creditors or the CAs cannot legally garnish your wage. But bankruptcy should always be used only as a last resort because bankruptcy will stay in your credit report for 10 years and may reduce your credit score. you should always file bankruptcy before the summon to garnish your wage receives your employer. However, if the wage garnishment is due to Federal tax debt or for alimony and child support obligation, the wage can be garnished even if you file bankruptcy.

Fri, 10/17/2008 - 10:02 Permalink
Mary

As far as I know, the creditor has to stop collecting any debts either by means of foreclosure or through garnishment. This is as per Federal bankruptcy laws. All you can do is to send a copy of the document that you have filed bankruptcy to your employer. This will stop garnishment of your wages.

Wed, 11/26/2008 - 13:19 Permalink
Kerri (not verified)

I filed for bankruptcy a couple of weeks ago and my attorney faxed a copy of the filing to my employer...two paychecks later, my employer is STILL taking money out for a judgment for medical bills! I know that they aren't supposed to...but how do I get that money back?

Thu, 06/11/2009 - 11:56 Permalink
rachael

Hi Kerri,

Are your wages being garnished for paying debts that include student loans, child alimony or federal taxes? These are "priority debts" that are not discharged by filing for bankruptcy.

Fri, 06/12/2009 - 05:29 Permalink
rachelraew (not verified)

My work recieved papers for a garnishment that has a court date for nov. 6 how long will it take for them to start garnishing money from my check? I am looking into filing bankruptcy but don't have the extra money right now.

Fri, 08/21/2009 - 19:53 Permalink
Tomica (not verified)

My employer had the automatic stay but they still took the money out, Now they are saying they are waiting on the return check from the company that garished my wages.!

Thu, 10/15/2009 - 03:16 Permalink
Justin

Hi Rachael,

After getting the judgment, the CA or the creditor must file a Writ of Execution and only after that can they garnish your wages. If that is passed, then garnishment starts immediately.

Thu, 10/15/2009 - 12:46 Permalink
Hannah (not verified)

Will filing bankruptcy eliminate outstanding student loans?

Thu, 10/15/2009 - 21:39 Permalink
Justin

Hi Hannah,

No, filing bankruptcy does not give you the advantage of eliminating the loans. Rather, filing bankruptcy will make a way for the creditor to get the outstanding balance. If you are filing a chapter 7 bankruptcy, then your assets may be sold off to pay the debt. In case of chapter 13 bankruptcy, you will get a chance to repay the debt through a repayment plan with the consent of the creditor and under the supervision of the court.

Fri, 10/16/2009 - 11:15 Permalink
debranewell2008

I believe they can still garnish your wages until you file bankruptcy. So I don't believe you can get your money back. Now if they continue to garnish your wages after you have filed then you can get your money back. Because it is illegal for them to try and collect from you after you have filed.

Fri, 11/13/2009 - 21:50 Permalink
wrgagurl (not verified)

pursuant to Federal Bankruptcy Law....there is a 90 day preference period...90 days back from date you filed that you can recover wages that were garnished.

Mon, 11/16/2009 - 21:57 Permalink
Steven Taylor (not verified)

My employee help me to send a letter to reduce my salary i will working part time they will send the payment dec.1 and my lawyer he open a bankruptcy . In the time i work cash under the table .
My wages garnishment it will be 0 DOLLARS. NO ONE NEED TO TAKE MONEY FROM MY SALARY.

Tue, 11/17/2009 - 06:22 Permalink
carol

Filing bankruptcy must stop any attempts to collect and it also includes garnishment. However, the debt for which the account is being garnished must be included in the bankruptcy and must be approved by the court that allows it to be discharged.

Tue, 11/17/2009 - 06:58 Permalink
symphony2121 (not verified)

i sent my notice of filing by fax to my employer how long til it is in effect to stop garnishment

Tue, 11/24/2009 - 18:48 Permalink
symphony2121 (not verified)

so if i was gettin garnished since nov 6 i can get that money back?

Tue, 11/24/2009 - 18:49 Permalink
Anonymous (not verified)

so az soon az i pay the attorney off they wiil stop my garnishment? it was for a car repo.

Mon, 12/14/2009 - 17:44 Permalink
Aaron (not verified)

I had a garnishment against a deadbeat and it should have kicked in months ago but didn't employer draggin they're feet. Now the person has filed bankruptsy which stopped the garnishment. How can I get my money owed me?

Tue, 12/15/2009 - 23:01 Permalink
sue (not verified)

i am asking my lawyer to garnish my ex's wages in order to recieve my alimony. my ex has treaten to claim bankrutcy. can you do this
in order to avoid paying me anything

Fri, 01/22/2010 - 01:37 Permalink
Anonymous (not verified)

Would like to know if my state incomes tax was garnish can o get will i get that back because i filed bankrupty this year?

Thu, 02/04/2010 - 15:42 Permalink
Justin

Hi Guest,

Nobody can garnish your wages and state income taxes if a bankruptcy is filed. An automatic stay comes in order after the court issues the bankruptcy. However if your state income tax had got garnished before the bankruptcy was actually ordered by the court, you won't be able to get that back.

Fri, 02/05/2010 - 06:19 Permalink
fireyone

So what would actually stop income tax from being garnished if it was already ordered by the court and hte person filed bankruptsy after the fact? If the bankruptcy gets awarded does it stop next years return from being garnished?

Sun, 02/07/2010 - 23:50 Permalink
madison (not verified)

I filed my own bankruptcy and had the meeting of creditors with the bankruptcy conservator. Once you have filed bankruptcy, at least chapter 7, garnishment must stop immediately. Any money that has been garnished 60 days before filing, as well as any money garnished after filing must be returned to you.

Mon, 02/22/2010 - 18:37 Permalink
LadyEagle (not verified)

Justin, the information you supplied to Hannah is not true. check your law. It depends on which one her and the attorney decides. If it is a Chapter13 she will be cleared of all of her debt. All your debt will be cleared and the downside is that your cc score will be down. You will experience problems for the next 10 years. But, hey at least you will be able to breath. You made a mistake, like so many and you asked for help. I am sure you did contact your creditors and you did not get any assistant from them. From there the account is close and they receive the pay off at the end of the year and sale your information to a collector so they can get you at a higher percentage. What you don't know is that your issue is not with the credit card but with the collection agency. They are the one taking you to court. and garnishing your wages. However if you owe Federal Taxes or child support you will have to pay. God Bless

Sun, 04/04/2010 - 05:40 Permalink
Mikey B. (not verified)

I recently was forced to retire. I have a lot of outstanding debt.
Mostly credit cards and a motorhome that I'm giving back.
My question is, If my retirement and social security is the only money I receive, and that can't be touched per federal law. Do I really need to file Bankrupcy ? I have no real property a car worth $2000.00 and a car I'm still paying for. The only thing I'm expecting is a lot of nasty phone call's.
Thanks, Mickey B.

Tue, 04/13/2010 - 20:16 Permalink
Aaron

Hi,

Can you tell why you want to file bankruptcy? If you face problems in paying off your debts, you can try to negotiate a settlement with the creditors. Debt settlement can lower your outstanding debt amount by at least 40-60%. Thus, it become much easier to pay. However, remember to get all the agreements in writing.

Thanks,

Aaron

Wed, 04/21/2010 - 07:41 Permalink
LindaKelly (not verified)

Our Chapter 7 was Discharged 2 months ago and my husband's check was just garnished for 414.00. We have no idea who is doing it because it just sais, *Wage Garnishment-Creditor*. This is Sat. so of course we have to wait until Monday to find out. But, we owe no taxes, child support or student loans. Could it be possible that this is a mistake by one of our creditors???

Sun, 05/09/2010 - 03:23 Permalink
Aaron

Hi LindaKelly,

You can try pulling a copy of your credit report and check who the creditor is?

Thanks,

Aaron

Fri, 05/14/2010 - 11:23 Permalink
ms. amy (not verified)

I filed a month ago and wage garnishment hasn't stopped. My employer says they have to receive a release from the creditor that put the garnishment on, which gets served by a sheriff. Is that right?

Fri, 08/13/2010 - 02:54 Permalink
Aaron

Hi ms. amy,

I am afraid your query is not totally clear. What is it that you had filed?

My employer says they have to receive a release from the creditor that put the garnishment on, which gets served by a sheriff.

Yes, this is true because the garnishment order has been issued by the court.

Thanks,

Aaron

Fri, 08/13/2010 - 09:26 Permalink
Aaron

Hi Daniel,

You will have to include your rental into the bankruptcy. Only then your landlord won't be able to sue you or collect the money from you. Once bankruptcy is issued, a stay order comes into effect.

Thanks,

Aaron

Mon, 09/06/2010 - 10:33 Permalink
Becky (not verified)

Ok so i filed bankruptcy sept 2, 2010 and i am now in a automatic stay. My husband's work started garnishing his wages on aug 27th. the paperwork was sent out to them and they keep telling us they dont recieve anything and that they will not stop garnishing him. So now they are illegally taking the money from his check each week. We tell our bankruptcy lawyer and they tell us they have nothing to do with it because we hired them for bankruptcy and that we need to hire a lawyer or hire them sepratley to stop the garnishment! I dont understand this and feel like i am getting scammed! what should i do?!!?

Wed, 09/15/2010 - 22:19 Permalink
Aaron

Hi Becky,

I think you should change your lawyer. If possible you should go to your husband's office personally and hand the bankruptcy paperwork to them. Also , send the paperwork through certified mail, requesting a return receipt.

Thanks,

Aaron

Thu, 09/16/2010 - 09:56 Permalink
Becky (not verified)

I will have to send it all through certified mail because my husband's
H-R department is in RI and we live in WI. so going there is a little out of the picture. And i agree i need a different lawyer but i just do not have the money for that. especially now that the money is being garnished still.
Thank you for your advice.
Becky

Thu, 09/16/2010 - 19:10 Permalink
Aaron

Hi Becky,

There are many such lawyers who provide free help. I think you can try to find out one in your area. That may help.

Thanks,

Aaron

Fri, 09/17/2010 - 09:33 Permalink
RunNey (not verified)

My employer was served with a wage garnishment. I was notified and immediatley looked into "How to put a stop to it?" The only option I pretty much has was to fill for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. So I found a decent lawyer who can do this for me. She told me I would have to wait 90days from when I last used my credit before filing, is this true? That if I didnt it would look like fraud to the courts and it could be rejected. Anywho, I am still in the process and getting all the paperwork completed with my lawyer but once everything is ready and filled how long will it take affect to my wage garnishment? is there anything i can do to speed up the process??

Thanks so much...
Runney

Fri, 10/08/2010 - 22:07 Permalink
Ne Ne (not verified)

I had my wages garnished for two(2) months, I filed BK and my attorney has said I will get those monies back. As of today it has been one(1) month, do you have an idea of how longit takes for the Trustee to return the monies to me.

I am in California, thanks

Wed, 10/13/2010 - 23:44 Permalink
Marcie (not verified)

I am in the process of filing my chapter 7. I have paid my attorney and all I have to do is pay the filing fee of $300 and I can file. It had to be postponed because I had lost my job, but I have a new one now and just need to wait for a pay check. One of the credit card companies got a default judgement against me, which my attorney filed an objection about it within the 14 days that the court allots for this, as I was not given proper notification. The creditor lawyer responded and asked for additional time to respond to my attorneys objection. I looked online and saw that they have filed something with the court for a lien and garnishment, even though the case has not been fully dispositioned. Are they able to do this? I will have the funds to file my chapter 7 within the next 30 days (probably less), but if they garnish my wages in the meantime, I wont have enough to pay the filing fee and pay my living expenses. Are they allowed to file those things before a case is fully dispositioned? I am so confused!

Sun, 10/24/2010 - 22:48 Permalink
garym (not verified)

I may be gettin garnish. Is there a way to control the amount that they take out. I work part time and barley make enough to live on. I would like to pay my debts just don;t have the money. I filed chapter 7, and i think i have 10yrs before it clears? Thank you.

Sat, 10/30/2010 - 12:44 Permalink
garym

Hello- can you file bankruptcy to stop garnishment or is there a way you to allow them to take so much so that you can live on?

Sat, 10/30/2010 - 19:11 Permalink
Marcia (not verified)

My employer received a paper to ganish my wages from the courts I have filed chapter seven bankrupcy my lawyer send my employer a copy of my filing and they still want to garnish my wages, I thought one you file no one can touch you

Sun, 03/13/2011 - 12:36 Permalink
Kerri B (not verified)

I wanted to find out what happens if the garnishment is from Arizona and the funds were from June 2010 and not paid out. Now plaintiff wants funds paid out. Employee filed Chapter 7 recently. Employee wants refund and plaintiff wants funds. It is older than 90 days so I am going to assume the funds go to the plaintiff. Am I correct?

Tue, 03/29/2011 - 22:07 Permalink
desiree (not verified)

i was told that my employer can hold the garnished wages for 60 days so that when my bankruptcy is filed i could possibly get that money back is this true?

Wed, 05/04/2011 - 21:25 Permalink
Eve (not verified)

I owe bank rent and the apt complex is garnishing my wages for two separate amounts. How can I stop garnishmen

Sun, 05/15/2011 - 21:21 Permalink
Gwen (not verified)

Yes you can get all your m money back that they have taken as long as your bankruptcy is filed during the period of the Garnishment. Your employer holds onto all the funds till the 60 day garnishment period or however long it was ordered is up and then forwards it to the collector.....

Sat, 05/21/2011 - 16:39 Permalink