When a debtor in Jacksonville, FL, defaults on his payment, most lenders will try to demand for their money through letters and phone calls before employing more drastic measures of collecting their debt. In the event that a debtor fails to respond to these communications, as a last resort, the creditor may go to court and obtain a judgment, following it up with a wage garnishment Jacksonville, FL, order.
This is simply a court order that requires your employer to withhold a certain portion of your income and forward it directly to the creditor in repayment of your debt. Your employer responds by taking money from your salary, failure to which they will be held liable for your debt.
The good news is that you also have options. You can work out a payment plan with your creditor in order to convince them not to follow through with the wage garnishment Jacksonville, FL, order. This is, however, not easy to accomplish. Creditors prefer paycheck garnishment as it ideally guarantees that they get their money.
The most effective way of stopping the wage garnishment is by filing for bankruptcy with the help of a good bankruptcy lawyer. Once you do this, the bankruptcy court automatically places a stay on all collection activities. In other words, creditors will not be allowed to collect their debt until the bankruptcy is dismissed, or if the court grants an order that a debt is not dischargeable.
During this automatic stay period, creditors are not allowed to undertake wage garnishment and any garnishment in effect must be stopped, if the bankruptcy carries on normally, you will receive a discharge. A “discharge forever” releases you from any obligation to the discharged debts.
There are, however, some restrictions on what can be protected by the automatic stay. Priority debts, such as child support, most student loans, most back taxes, and alimony cannot be discharge and are not taken care of under automatic stay. Once you file for bankruptcy, you must inform your employer’s human resource department and the creditor’s lawyer that a bankruptcy has been filed and provide the necessary supporting document so that the garnishment can be stopped.
On a final note, it is important that you do not take filing for bankruptcy lightly; it should be a last resort. A good bankruptcy lawyer will help you consider all your options before proceeding with the filing as a means of stopping the wage garnishment. This is because the bankruptcy record will reflect on your credit score for ten years. The bankruptcy lawyer will advise you on the broader consequences of each of the options that are available to you in order that you may make an informed decision on the way forward.
The most effective way of stopping or avoiding a wage garnishment in Jacksonville FL, order is filing for bankruptcy with the help of a bankruptcy lawyer.
