Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in New York
Judgement
Three years ago I co-signed a loan for my son. He is currently seeking a reorganization of his debts through a chapter 13. In the meantime I have received a judgement in the mail stating that I will have to pay the $4200 dollars outstanding on the bank loan, and in 20 days they will be contacting my
employer to garnish 10% of my wages from my gross pay until loan is paid off. This Judgement was delivered to my old address from the Sheriff's dept of a county in which I no longer reside. Her is my question. When can the creditors legally start to garnish my wages ? Don't they have to wait until they have settled with the party that has actually received the monies from the loan ?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Judgement
You have a few issues here. First, as a cosigner of a loan, you are equally liable with the primary debtor. A creditor need not first try to collect from the primary debtor unless the note or contract specifically provides for that.
If you were served with the summons at an address that you were no longer living at, then you may be able to vacate the judgment.
If your son has filed a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, then there is a stay against collection actions against you as the codebtor. There are certain exceptions where the stay does not go into effect. Also, the creditor can ask to have the stay lifted under certain circumstances. However, until the creditor seeks relief from the stay, its actions in trying to collect the debt from you are in violation of the stay. The creditor should have been given notice of the bankruptcy proceeding. If your son has an attorney representing him in the bankruptcy proceeding, let him know of the creditor�s actions. Otherwise, you should consult with an attorney.
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