Most garnishments rest on a default judgment that can be vacated. We file the motion to set aside, claim federal and state exemptions, and negotiate with the creditor to release the wage attachment.
"The first I knew about the lawsuit was when my paycheck was 25% smaller. Credo filed the motion to vacate within ten days. The judgment came off; the garnishment with it."
Wage garnishment is the consequence of a judgment, which is the consequence of a lawsuit, which usually started months earlier. Most garnishments rest on a default judgment, meaning the underlying case was decided without you, often because the summons was never properly delivered, or because you didn't know what to do with it when it was.
That's the bad news. The good news: a default judgment is the most undoable kind of judgment. Federal and state procedure both allow motions to vacate within a window, typically months from the judgment date, sometimes longer when service was defective or when there's good cause.
Even where vacatur isn't viable, federal and state exemption rules cap how much can be taken from your paycheck. The federal CCPA limits garnishment to 25% of disposable earnings (or earnings above 30 times the federal minimum wage, whichever is less). State rules are often broader.
The procedural track. A motion to vacate the default. Grounds usually include defective service (you weren't actually served), excusable neglect, or facts that suggest a meritorious defense to the original suit. When the motion succeeds, the judgment is set aside, and the garnishment goes with it.
The substantive track. Even where vacatur isn't viable, federal and state exemption rules limit what can be taken. Federal CCPA caps; state-specific exemptions for low-wage earners, public benefits, retirement income, and head-of-household status; protections against garnishment from multiple creditors at the same time. A claim of exemption can shrink the bite dramatically.
The two tracks run in parallel. Even when the motion to vacate is pending, the exemption claim limits the damage in the meantime.
Two paths. Where the underlying default is vacated, the garnishment ends and the original lawsuit reopens. At that point we defend it like any other suit, with the same defenses available on the lawsuits page.
Where the default holds but exemptions are claimed, the garnishment shrinks or stops based on the exemption math. In some cases the garnished amount drops to zero; in others it falls to a fraction of the federal cap.
Where neither vacatur nor exemption resolves the matter, we negotiate directly with the creditor for a settlement that releases the wage attachment in exchange for an agreed payoff, often less than the remaining judgment balance.
Day one: pull the writ and the judgment. Within days: the motion or the exemption claim is filed.
The writ of garnishment, the underlying judgment, the original complaint, your payroll records.
Motion to vacate the default, raising service defects, excusable neglect, and meritorious defense wherever supported.
Federal CCPA and state exemptions filed in parallel; shrinks the bite while the motion is pending.
Default vacated and underlying case defended, exemption math reduces or stops the garnishment, or negotiated payoff releases the writ.
Garnishment defense relies on federal limits set by the CCPA and on state procedure for vacatur and exemptions. Both come into play in most cases.
Caps wage garnishment at 25% of disposable earnings or the amount above 30 times the federal minimum wage, whichever is less. Protects against retaliatory firing for a single garnishment.
Read moreApplies to collection agencies that pursue post-judgment enforcement. Misrepresentations about garnishment authority, threats beyond what the law allows, and improper service can each be actionable under §1692e.
Read moreNames changed, amounts approximate.
I never got the original summons. They served someone at my old address. The motion to vacate was granted, the default came off, and the underlying case settled within a few months for a fraction of the demand. The garnishment stopped after the first paycheck.
My income was already low, and I was supporting my mother. The head-of-household exemption shrank the garnishment to almost nothing, and we negotiated a small settlement to release the writ entirely a few months later.
Two creditors had garnishment orders simultaneously, which violated the federal cap. The court ordered the second garnishment paused and the first was released after settlement. My paycheck went back to normal in about six weeks.
Once a wage attachment is in place, only one of the three real options can actually move it through the court that ordered it.