Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Georgia

Two choices:

(1) You pay off the debt.

(2) You hire a lawyer such as myself and file a bankruptcy. Feel free to call me at 404-768-3509 if you prefer this possible option.

To Attorney Ashman's answer, I would add, you cannot stop a wage garnishment, assuming that there was a properly entered judgment. There are very limited grounds for challenging garnishment and if the debt was your debt and you were properly served, then it will be virtually impossible. And if you were not served, then you need to go back to the county where the judgment was entered and get the judgment vacated.

Litigation costs money. That money would be well spent if it was not your debt. If it is your debt, then you can spend money filing frivolous motions that ultimately will be denied or you can use the funds more constructively. If you have questions, then you need to see a litigation attorney who handles consumer debt to see if a challenge is possible.

Depending on the amount of debt you have, it may make sense to file bankruptcy. I am not a bankruptcy lawyer and if this is what you want to do, see Attorney Ashman or one of the other attorneys at Law Guru or in your area.

If bankruptcy is not an option, know that wage garnishments can be in effect for 179 days and can be extended until the judgment is paid off. Switching to a new job will delay this, but not end it Most states (except for PA, NC, SC and Texas) have wage garnishment so moving outside of GA does not necessarily solve the problem either. In GA, the creditor can get up to 25% of your disposable pay (your gross pay minus required deductions like for taxes). 25% is the maximum; a creditor can get less depending on your earnings. If the maximum is already being deducted, like for child support or a prior judgment, then the creditor gets nothing else.

Assuming that 25% would be taken, then you need to think about resolving the debt in some way. Depending on the amount garnished, this might be enough. To stop garnishment, sometimes you can work out a payment plan if the creditor will accept what you are offering -usually payments can be 2% to 4% of whatever the balance on the judgment is now. Or if you have the funds (roughly between 50% and 80% of the debt depending on the creditor), you can try to settle the debt in a lump sum payment.