Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Utah
I want to Garnish a person's pay, pursuant to a judgment. The instructions (Utah) say to first "verify that the garnishee employs the debtor," otherwise I may be liable for up to $1000 to the garnishee. I know for sure the Garnishee works at the business since she owns it (a franchise). Is it still necessary? Giving advance notice (i.e., the verification letter) will allow the garnishee to avoid paying by deferring income. Garnishee's pay is by commission.
1 Answer from Attorneys
It may be wiser to first serve a Supplemental Order on the debtor, which requires the person to appear in court and there answer your questions about the debtor's assets, including bank accounts and property. Once you have this information you can garnish the bank account. The problem with garnishing wages is that the debtor will probably ignore or report no wages. (Which may be true because the owner probably takes a draw, not wages)