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A Judgment Explained |
| When the Court awards a judgment it sends out
a notice to the Claimant detailing the terms of the judgment.
The Defendant receives a similar document ordering him to pay
the awarded sum to the Claimant. In many cases the Defendant
fails to pay the awarded sum. The Claimant must then decide
how to enforce the judgment and collect the awarded sum. The enforcement methods are listed below. Please also see our page on fees & costs. |
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A Warrant of Execution |
| A Warrant of Execution enables the court bailiffs
to seize goods from the Defendant. They will try to collect
the cash award but if this is not possible they can take goods
to the value of the cash award. Bailiffs can be refused entry to premises and cannot remove essential items or tradesman's tools. |
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Attachment of Earnings Order |
| An Attachment of Earnings Order is sent to the
Defendant's employer. It instructs the employer to deduct an
amount from the Defendant's earnings each pay day and send
it to the Central Attachment of Earnings Payment System (CAPS)
in Northampton who will be responsible for collecting the payments.
If there are other Attachment of Earnings Orders in force your
order may be joined to make a Consolidated Order. If the Defennt has very low earnings the court may not grant such an order. |
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Charging Order |
| A Charging Order prevents the Defendant from
selling his land or property without first paying you. As such
orders are registered with the land Registry they can be complicated
and certainly require the services of a solicitor. It is worth remembering that you will not get your money until the Defendant sells his/her property. |
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Third Party Debt Order (Formerly Garnishee Order) |
| A Third Party Debt Order is a very effective
way of enforcing a judgment if the Defendant has cash on deposit
with the bank. The order freezes the Defendant's bank account
until such time as you are paid in full and the judge can order
the bank to pay you. The order is flexible as it can also be
sent to anyone who in turn owes the Defendant any money. It is - of course - necessary to know the name and address of the Defendant's bank or building society. More importantly, you must be sure that the Defendant has cash in the bank. |
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Bankruptcy or Company Winding Up Petition |
| To issue a Bankruptcy Petition against the Defendant
can be a very effective way of forcing him to pay you. However,
the costs are high and there is always the risk that he will
gladly allow the petition to succeed and walk away leaving
you with another bill. A Company Winding Up Petition carries the same advantages and risks as a Bankruptcy Petition. However, a search at Companies House will provide information as to the company assets, which if substantial makes a Winding Up Petition viable. |