How to Garnish Wages in Minnesota

Laws on the procedure for wage garnishment vary from state to state.

After obtaining a court judgment, a creditor can seek garnishment of a debtor's wages to collect what's owed. Each state has different laws regarding wage garnishment. In Minnesota, the guidelines for enforcing a wage garnishment are outlined under Chapter 571 of the state legislative code. If you're interested in pursuing garnishment for an outstanding debt, you need to understand how the process works.

Things You'll Need

• Court judgment
• Judgment enforcement forms
• Debtor's contact information
• Debtor's employment information

Instructions

1. Obtain a civil judgment against the debtor in the conciliation or district court in the county where the debtor resides. You must serve the debtor with a summons and complaint notifying them of the reason for the lawsuit, the amount you're suing for and the date of the scheduled court hearing. You must be able to provide proof of the debtor's liability in order to secure a money judgment in civil court.

2. Locate the debtor's assets by filing an Order of Disclosure with the district court. Under Minnesota law, the debtor is required to provide you with the information necessary to enforce a wage garnishment, such as their employer's name, address and contact information. If the debtor fails to respond to the order, you may file an Affidavit in Support of an Order to Show Cause, which compels the debtor to appear in court and provide you with the requested information.

3. Serve the debtor with a Garnishment Exemption Notice and Notice of Intent to Garnish Earnings, as described under Chapter 571 of the Minnesota Code. This document notifies the debtor that a wage garnishment order is pending and details the procedure for claiming certain types of income as exempt. Under state law, you must give debtors at least ten days to respond to the notice prior to executing a wage garnishment.

4. Serve the debtor's employer with a Garnishment Summons as prescribed under Chapter 571 of the state code.The employer must provide you or your attorney with a disclosure form stating the amount of the debtor's wages that are subject to garnishment. Under Minnesota law, you may garnish the lesser of 25 percent of the debtor's weekly net income or the amount by which the debtor's net income exceeds 40 times the federal minimum wage.

5. File a Writ of Execution with the court to enforce the wage garnishment order. You must pay a fee to have the writ served to the debtor's employer by a member of the sheriff's office in the county where the debtor lives. State law requires the employer to begin withholding the debtor's wages for the specified amount upon receipt of the execution order.

Tips & Warnings

• The state of Minnesota protects certain types of income from garnishment, including social security benefits, public assistance benefits, unemployment compensation, worker's compensation, supplemental security Income, veterans' benefits and child support or alimony payments you receive.

• If you attempt to garnish a debtor's wages without seeking a judgment or execute a garnishment against exempt wages, the court can order you to repay any amounts withheld along with damages and attorney's fees up to $100.

References

• Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes: Chapter 571.74 Garnishment Summons
• Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes: Chapter 571.922 Limitations on Wage Garnishment
• Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes: Chapter 571.924 Garnishment Exemption Notice
• Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes: Chapter 571.925 Form of Notice

Resources

• Minnesota Courts: Civil Court Forms
• Minnesota Courts: Judgment Enforcement Forms