Walk It Through: The Judgment
A head of family's wages to $750 a week, exempt wages traced in the bank for 6 months, and a $5,000 car.
A card company wins a judgment against a cook who supports a family, and moves to garnish the cook's pay.
Two things a person in this spot might do. Picking one shows what the law says about it.
One judgment and one family. The homestead under the State Constitution, retirement accounts, and claiming exemptions are not worked through here.
A practice walkthrough, not a prediction of how any real one will go. Legal information, not legal advice.
Words this turns on
Terms with a legal meaning that is narrower than the everyday one. Each links to the definition and the authority behind it.
- Durational alimonyAlimony for a set period, not available after a marriage of less than 3 years, and limited to a share of the marriage's length: 50 percent of a short one, 60 percent of a moderate one, 75 percent of a long one.
- Head of familyA person whose disposable earnings, at $750 a week or less, are all exempt from attachment or garnishment; above that, they may not be garnished unless the person agreed otherwise in writing.