My paycheck or bank account is being garnished

A creditor with a court judgment can take part of your wages or freeze your bank account, but a lot of what you have is protected by law. Protection is not automatic. You usually have just 10 days to claim it.

What to do first

Deadlines

A "judicial day" skips weekends and court holidays. The 10-day deadline in NRS 21.112(1) does not say judicial days, so count calendar days to be safe and file early. A judgment lasts 6 years and the creditor can renew it (NRS 17.214), so a claim that works now may need to be filed again later if your income or property changes.

What a creditor can't take

Nevada protects these from collection on an ordinary debt (NRS 21.090(1) unless noted). This is not the whole list; the Notice of Execution you were mailed has a longer checklist.

Some of these protections don't apply to a judgment for child support, a bankruptcy court order, certain taxes, or a debt for the purchase or a loan on that same item, such as the unpaid balance on the car you bought (NRS 21.090(1)(g), (2)).

Money your bank must leave alone on its own

• Up to $2,000 (or everything in the account, if less) stays available to you if exempt federal benefits such as Social Security, SSI or VA benefits were direct-deposited into the account in the 45 days before the writ was served (NRS 21.105(1)).
• Up to $400 (or everything, if less) stays available in any personal account otherwise, unless the writ is to collect support (NRS 21.105(2)).
• Federal rules also require the bank to protect federal benefits direct-deposited in the last 2 months (31 C.F.R. part 212).
• Anything above those amounts that is still exempt, you have to claim with a Claim of Exemption (NRS 21.105(4)-(5)). The court can ask for 90 days of bank statements, so bring them.

If the creditor objects

If you never knew about the case

A default judgment is one entered because the person sued didn't respond in time. It can be collected just like any other judgment. To undo it, you file a Motion to Set Aside Default Judgment in the court that entered it. The judge can set it aside for, among other reasons:

• your mistake, surprise, or excusable neglect (NRCP/JCRCP 60(b)(1))
• fraud, misrepresentation, or misconduct by the other side (60(b)(3))
• the judgment is void, or has already been paid or released (60(b)(4)-(5))
• you were never personally served with the summons and complaint and never appeared or waived service (60(d)(2))

Forms

All free at the Self-Help Center, or download the official PDF. Use the version for the court that issued your writ: Justice Court (including small claims) or District Court.

Where to file and who to mail

Free help

Good to know

Protected money is only safe if you claim it. A creditor or bank won't do it for you, beyond the $2,000 / $400 automatic amounts. If your only income is benefits, it helps to tell the creditor in writing that your account holds only Social Security or other exempt money, and keep a copy. It doesn't legally stop a garnishment, but it often makes the creditor stop trying.

Winning one claim doesn't protect you forever. If the creditor finds other money, or your income goes up, they can try again, and you file a new claim each time. If the debt isn't protected, your options are to pay it in full or on a plan the creditor agrees to, move it into protected form (a recorded homestead, for example), or wipe it out in bankruptcy.

Once you've paid the judgment off, the creditor has to file a Satisfaction of Judgment (NRS 17.200). An unpaid judgment on record hurts your credit, so if they don't file it, file the motion above.

Collecting a judgment instead? See Someone owes me money and a court agrees.