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Bank Accounts - Garnishment
What assets can be garnished?
Generally, a creditor has to sue and win a court judgment against you before they can garnish your income. Creditors typically cannot garnish welfare, Social Security, unemployment, pension, or disability checks.
There are exceptions. Different branches of government, such as the IRS, do not need a court order to garnish wages. And government creditors can garnish more than your paycheck: Federal and State agencies can garnish veteran's benefits, social security, or other government money.
Due to a garnishment and/or judgment, the bank took funds from my social security check. Can they do this?
Generally, a creditor has to sue and win a court judgment against you before they can garnish your income. Creditors typically cannot garnish welfare, Social Security, unemployment, pension, or disability checks.
There are exceptions. Different branches of government, such as the IRS, do not need a court order to garnish wages. And government creditors can garnish more than your paycheck: Federal and State agencies can garnish veteran's benefits, social security, or other government money.
I had a levy/court order/garnishment/judgment against me. The bank took the money from my account and gave it to the IRS without notifying me. Is this legal?
Yes. The bank, upon receiving proper notification of a lien against your account, must surrender such funds as may be necessary to satisfy the levy/court order/garnishment/judgment. The bank may notify you of the lien; however, it is not required to do so.
If you wish to challenge the lien, you should contact legal counsel.