The Utah Judiciary is aware of a scam involving text messages that falsely appear to come from the courts and demand payment through links or QR codes. These messages are not legitimate - courts do not request payments this way, and individuals should not respond or provide any personal or financial information. More Info

Garnishment and Debt Help

What is a garnishment?

If a court decides one person owes money to another, it enters a judgment. This judgment identifies the creditor (the person owed money), the debtor (the person who owes money), and the amount owed.

One way to collect this money is through a Writ of Garnishment. This is a court order that requires a garnishee (a third party holding your earnings or money, like an employer or bank) to send the debtor's property to the creditor to pay the debt. By law, a creditor cannot take all of a person's money. Some earnings and property are protected so the debtor can pay for basic needs. URCP 64D (Rules of Civil Procedure).

 

Who this page applies to

If you are a creditor: See the How to apply for a Writ of Garnishment page for information about the process for asking for a writ of garnishment, and forms. 

If you are a garnishee: See the Responsibilities of Garnishees page for information about your responsibilities.

If you are the debtor, this page explains the legal procedures and protections available during garnishment, and how to use the necessary forms. It is important to understand that a judge cannot stop a garnishment or set aside a judgment based on financial hardship or an inability to pay.

  • If you are the joint owner of the property: If you own part of the property being taken (like a joint bank account) but do not owe the debt, you can ask the court to release your share. You must file a Reply and Request for Hearing (available in the Forms section below) within 14 days of receiving notice.  

 

Types of Garnishment

There are two kinds of writs of garnishment used to collect a judgment:

  • Writs of Continuing Garnishment - used to garnish earnings (wages)
  • Writs of Garnishment - used to garnish other property, (like a bank account) 

The rules on this page are for when a person or a company takes you to court and wins a judgment.

However, some government agencies do not have to take you to court to take money from your paycheck or bank account. They can send a garnishment paper directly to your employer or bank on their own. This is called an administrative garnishment.

These agencies issue administrative garnishments:

If your employer or bank gets an administrative garnishment from ORS or DWS, the law forces them to handle those agencies first. This means your bank or employer will stop or delay sending money to any other companies you owe. See the Multiple Writs section below to see exactly how your bank or employer handles this.

Select an option below to jump to information on challenging the garnishment, objecting to the judgment, or seeking debt relief: 

I want to challenge a garnishment
I want to object to a judgment
I want help with my money problems

 

How much can they garnish?

Wages: A Writ of Continuing Garnishment lets a creditor take part of your paycheck. The law protects a bare minimum portion of your earnings so you have money to live on. To do this, your employer must calculate your disposable earnings (the money left after taxes) and then take the smaller of two amounts:

  • For judgments that are NOT for child support: The smaller of 25% of your disposable earnings OR the amount by which your weekly pay exceeds 30 times the federal minimum wage (which is currently $217.50 per week).

  • For judgments for past-due child support (arrears): The smaller of 50% of your disposable earnings OR the amount by which your weekly pay exceeds 30 times the federal minimum wage (which is currently $217.50 per week).

If you get paid bi-weekly, semi-monthly, or monthly, your employer will adjust this math to match your exact pay period. You can check the Garnishee's Answers to Interrogatories for Earnings form you received to see exactly how your employer calculated these numbers. Read that form carefully to make sure their math is correct! 

Bank accounts: A Writ of Garnishment allows a creditor to take all available money in a bank account to pay the judgment. If any of that money is exempt (protected), it should not be taken. You can file a Reply and Request for Hearing to protect that money.

 

How long can wages be garnished?

Your wages can be garnished until the debt is paid. A writ of continuing garnishment is effective for one year after the date it was served, or for 120 calendar days if another writ of continuing garnishment is served. If the writ expires, the creditor can request a new one. A judgment is valid for eight years, but it can be renewed.

 

Multiple Writs (If you have more than one judgment against you)

This section does not apply to orders from other states or federal agencies (like the IRS for federal taxes or the U.S. Department of Education for federal student loans). Those agencies follow different laws, and your employer or a bank may have to take money for them even if they are already sending money for a Utah court garnishment order.

For garnishment orders issued by Utah state courts, the following rules apply:

Sometimes more than one person has a judgment saying you owe them money. They might all send court orders (writs) to your bank or employer.

Your employer or bank can only follow one order at a time. Other creditors must wait their turn based on which order your employer or bank received first.

Exceptions for ORS and DWS orders

Your employer or bank must follow orders from these two agencies before any other writs of garnishment, even if a regular creditor filed first:

  • Office of Recovery Services (ORS): This includes orders for current child support or past-due child support.

  • Department of Workforce Services (DWS): They collect money for overpayments of unemployment or public assistance benefits.

If your bank or employer gets an order from ORS or DWS, they must keep sending money to those agencies until that debt is completely paid off. This means your employer or bank will not send money to anyone else until the ORS or DWS debt is paid in full.

 

Challenging the Garnishment

Follow these steps.

 

Objecting to the Judgment

You cannot use a garnishment hearing to challenge why the judgment was entered. If you think the judgment should not have been entered against you (for example, if you were never served with the original lawsuit), you must address the judgment itself:

This is a formal request asking the judge to undo the judgment against you. If the judge agrees, the judgment is removed, and the case reopens. This gives you a new chance to defend yourself and explain to the court why you don't owe the money. A judge will usually only do this for specific reasons. See the court’s Motion to Set Aside Judgment page for more information about the process and forms.  

A judge will usually only do this for specific reasons, such as:  

  • You were never served: You didn't get the original legal papers telling you that you were being sued.
  • A mistake or surprise: Something happened that was out of your control which kept you from answering the lawsuit on time.
  • The judgment is already paid: You can prove the debt was already settled. 

Filing a Motion to Set Aside takes time to be processed by the court. If you want the court to pause the garnishment right away while the judge decides whether to cancel the judgment, you should also file this motion. See our page Motion to Delay (Stay) Enforcement of a Judgment for more information about the process and forms.

    An appeal is a formal request for a higher court to review your case. An appeal is not a motion. It is a different legal process that you use if you believe the judge made a specific legal mistake during your case.

    Because appeals are very complicated and have strict rules, most people talk to a lawyer before starting one. See the court’s Appeals page for more information about the process and forms.  

    You can only file an appeal if you believe a judge made a mistake about a court rule or the law. You can appeal the original judgment that said you owed the money, or you can appeal a judge's recent decision about your garnishment.

    To file an appeal, you must have actively participated in that specific part of the case—meaning you filed your paperwork on time, went to the court hearings, and told the judge your side of the story before they ruled against you.

    1 An appeal is not a new trial and you cannot use it to share new evidence. You also cannot file an appeal if you missed the court hearing or missed the deadline to file your original paperwork. If you missed your chance to participate, you must look at the Motion to Set Aside option instead.

    If you are having a hard time paying your bills, resources are available to help you manage your debt. 

    A credit counselor cannot stop your garnishment, but they can help you figure out how to keep paying for housing and food while your money is being taken. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) keeps a list of these approved counselors in Utah.

    Even though these groups are often called "housing agencies," they also help with setting up payment plans, fixing credit, and dealing with debt. To find a group that can help, go to the HUD Counseling Services search page. Choose Utah and select "Managing or Budgeting Your Finances" to see a list of groups near you.

    Sometimes a payment plan is not enough to solve the problem. Bankruptcy is a type of case you file in a federal court. It can help people wipe out or change the debt they owe. Deciding to file for bankruptcy is a big choice. Not every debt can be wiped out. It is important to talk to a lawyer before you decide. You can find videos and simple guides on the Bankruptcy Basics page on the U.S. Bankrupcty Court website.

     

    Forms

    The forms you need depend on your case. What is your case about?

    • 1508DC
    • 1509FA 

    • 1508DC
    • 1509DC

     

    Back to Top