Wage garnishment is the process of taking (garnishing) a portion of your paycheck to pay a debt. A creditor who wins a judgment against a debtor for a delinquent debt may use wage garnishment as a way to enforce the judgment if the debtor fails to pay the amount awarded to the creditor by the court.

For a creditor to obtain the right to garnish your wages, that creditor must first obtain a favorable judgment against you and then petition the court to issue a court order to your employer detailing the amount to be garnished and where to send the garnished portion of the paycheck. Usually, a creditor will not petition the court for a wage garnishment unless you fail to pay the amount awarded to the creditor by the court or refuse to work out a plan for repayment. Working out a structured repayment plan or settlement may help keep the creditor from garnishing your wages.

Federal law limits the amount that may be garnished from a paycheck to 25% of disposable earnings per week or any amount of disposable earnings in excess of $154.50 per week (30 times minimum wage, which is currently $5.15 per hour). However, some state laws place additional restrictions on how much of a debtor's wages can be garnished and some states prohibit any wage garnishment.

If you have questions or concerns about wage garnishment, contact an attorney licensed to practice law in your state.

For more information on wage garnishment, click on the link below.

• Federal Wage Garnishment Law