In most states, a judgment creditor can pay the local sheriff to try to collect the judgment debtor’s wages to help enforce a judgment. Usually, the hard part is finding out where the judgment debtor works. Trying to find out where your debtor works is called a place of employment search, sometimes abbreviated as POE.
This article is my opinion, and not legal advice. I am an expert in remission of sentences and I am not a lawyer. If you ever need legal advice or a strategy to use, contact an attorney.
Wage liens are not secured, for reasons including that the debtor may file for bankruptcy, or there could be another creditor with an already established prior wage lien; which means his will not be attached and the money he spent will be wasted.
In order for a bailiff to try to garnish part of your judgment debtor’s wages, he or she must first purchase a writ of execution from the court. Depending on where he lives, he must hire a registered process server, the sheriff, or both; to serve a lien on your judgment debtor’s employer. The procedure for an attempted repossession will require even more paperwork. Here are some of the ways one can find out where a judgment debtor works, or otherwise earns income:
1) Outsource your trial and let an expert try to recover your trial, so you don’t have to spend more money or time.
2) Visit social networking websites such as Facebook, Google (both for search and your social networks), LinkedIn, etc., to look for clues as to where your debtor works or how they generate income. Some people brag on such sites about where they work, or about their other income or assets.
3) Schedule and have notified it, an examination of the judgment debtor. In such an examination, documents of the debtor or, sometimes, even of third parties, for example, his bank, may be cited; to find out where the debtor works, or his self-employment status, or his other assets or income.
4) Pay a private investigator to try to find out where the debtor works. This usually doesn’t come cheap, however, an IP report can provide other clues about your debtor’s other assets.
5) In the morning (usually early), follow your debtor with your vehicle to try to determine if he is driving to work, being careful not to be noticed. This may require more than one try.
6) Find an online job and/or asset search company. However, most of the best companies require subscriptions and may not offer services to people who own a single trial.
7) Politely ask the debtor’s friends or neighbors about their judgment, without mentioning judgments or debts. If you know where the debtor used to work, sometimes your former employer will know where the debtor works now.
In today’s and tomorrow’s economy, mainstream jobs are shrinking. More and more people will have to invent their own jobs or find some other way to earn money, or live with less money. Many judgment debtors have no assets available, making judgment recovery a long shot.