Filing a Request of Garnishment
You must wait 21 days after the judgment was signed before you can get a garnishment. Form MC 12 or MC 13 are used and the forms may be purchased at the Court for $1.00. Filing fees for garnishments are $15.00. There are two types of garnishments: 1) periodic and 2) non-periodic.
A periodic writ of garnishment (MC 12) is used to garnish the defendant’s wages, rent payments, land contract payments, or other income which is paid to the defendant on a periodic basis. A periodic garnishment is valid until the expiration date listed by the Court or until the judgment, interest, and costs are paid off, whichever occurs first.
A non-periodic writ of garnishment (MC 13) is used to garnish the defendant’s bank account or other property. Once the money has been garnished under the non-periodic writ, the writ is no longer valid. If there is a remaining balance on the judgment, you must get another writ to collect more money.
Fill in the names and addresses of both the defendant and the garnishee on the Request part of the form. The garnishee is the person or business who has control or possession of the defendant’s money. Once you complete the Request, you must file it with the Court. The filing fee of $15.00 must be cash or money order as the Court does not accept personal checks.
The Court will issue the Writ (order) by signing the form. The Request and Writ must be served on the garnishee along with a form called Disclosure (MC 14). If the garnishment is for periodic payments, you must have a check made payable to the garnishee in the amount of $6.00. You must have this writ served on the garnishee. You can do this either by a process server or by certified mail. If you do not know any process servers, you may look in the phone book.
When do I get my money for the garnishment?
The garnishee has 14 days after the Writ is served to let you, the court, and the defendant know if any money is available for garnishment. This information will be provided on form MC 14, Garnishee Disclosure. If you are trying to garnish wages, you will only receive part of the wages based on a federal formula.
If any money is available, it will be withheld from the Defendant right away. However, this money will be held for 28 days. If the garnishment is for periodic payments, money will continue to be sent to you as payments become due to the Defendant until the writ expires.
What Else Can I Do?
If your case against the Defendant involved a traffic accident, you can ask the Court for an abstract of judgment which suspends the Defendant’s Michigan driver license until s/he pays the judgment. You must wait 30 days after the judgment date before you can get an abstract of judgment. You need to provide the defendant’s full name, date of birth, and Michigan driver license number. There is no filing fee. The forms can be purchased at the Court for $1.00.
THIS INFORMATION ATTEMPTS TO EXPLAIN ONLY THE HIGHLIGHTS OF THE COLLECTING YOUR JUDGMENT. IT IS NOT A COMPLETE STATEMENT OF THE LAW. CLERKS OF THE COURT WILL BE HAPPY TO ASSIST YOU IN THE PROCESSING OF YOUR CLAIM, BUT THEY ARE NOT ATTORNEYS AND CANNOT GIVE LEGAL ADVICE. IF YOU HAVE FURTHER QUESTIONS, YOU MAY WISH TO CONSULT AN ATTORNEY, OR HAVE AN ATTORNEY REPRESENT YOU