Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Illinois

Re: Judgements

if you want to avoid bankruptcy you need to negotiate with the creditors. But you will probably have to pay them everything you owe, plus court costs, interest and attorneys fees. The $17,000.00 over 5 years might be $30,000.00 or about $500.00 a month. In the mean time they can garnish your wages and lien your property.

If you file a bankruptcy petition it will cost you less than $2500.00. You will not owe anyone anything, and your credit score will immediately get better.

Re: Judgements

The only way to avoid garnishment is to pay the debt. There will be no reason for the judgment creditors to not garnish your wages if you are not trying to pay them. Many creditors will garnish your wages even if you do try to pay them monthly installments because garnishments are more reliable.

Bankruptcy would wipe away your debt quickly (within 4-6 months) and you wouldn't have to cough up more than the attorney's fee and court costs. You might not want to file bankruptcy, but that is the best way to avoid garnishments.