Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Maryland

If a creditor has obtained a judgment against you (by filing a court case and winning) they may legally seek to garnish your bank accounts to collect that judgment. It doesn't matter where the money originally came from. Anything in the bank account when the judgment creditor files plus anything put into the bank account later can be attached up to the total amount of judgment. Maryland law does offer some exemptions from garnishment but they are not automatic - you will need to file a motion with the court to raise those exemptions. If you have less than $6,000 in the bank you may benefit from immediately filing to exempt the property. If you do nothing the garnishee bank will have no choice but to turn over the money.

You may want to consult with an attorney to get some help in dealing with judgments. If you chose to represent yourself you should be very aware of the timeframes involved as you lose certain legal rights as time passes.

How did this "hold" come about? Were you served with a complaint in a lawsuit?

You should know that it is not uncommon for a creditor to sue a debtor and obtain a judgment against him without his knowledge. This result usually occurs when the debtor was not properly served with the complaint and supporting papers (perhaps someone with a similar name or at a nearby address was served instead). As such, the debtor did not know that they were supposed to appear in court and could not defend themselves. If you believe you were not properly served, you should request that the judgment be vacated and the matter re-set for trial. You may wish to seek the assistance of a lawyer in this regard.

Good luck.

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