Judgment drafting for debt collection or garnishment: lessons from the trenches #43298

Another installment of lessons from the deeply exciting and engaging field of judgment enforcement.

A new client brought us a judgment that needs to be collected on. As always, "Kudos!" to the unnamed attorney that secured the judgment. We can always improve (for instance I don't know if Kudos should be capitalized or formatted as done).

The relevant part is as follows:

What's wrong with above:

• The judgment accrues interest only on the principal and attorney fees. It does not apply interest on late fees or unpaid utilities, which is entirely could (and should).

• The costs (typically process server and filing fee) should be accruing interest, but there are no costs listed on the judgment. Typically, that would be about $200-$400 depending on the circumstances - this is a superior court eviction judgment.

• 12% interest: the judge wrote it, so it applies. The law generally is that consumer debt (which always includes evictions) is 9%. If the lease provides for 12%, or the judge signs it, then some other rate can be sought.

• "Per annum": fine. Whatever. Maybe someone thinks the judgment is improperly going to describe it as applying every lunar rotation.

What could be done instead? Less is more. "Judgment shall accrue interest at 9%" Simple. Clean. Doesn't get your judgment highlighted. #notallpublicityisgoodpublicity, #peopleusehashtags, #quitreadingthisparagraph

Who cares? This is pedantic whining!

Partially true. Once upon a time, our office also represented debtors. Typically, debtors owe at least some money to the creditor that claims is owed. Therefore, when representing a debtor, one of the things that you are forced to rely on is the protections that the state affords to debtors that are not reciprocally afforded to creditors.

Credit card companies, banks, auto lenders, etc. are really good at keeping track of records and can typically demonstrate with a high degree of accuracy how much is owed. Thus, when hoping for a technicality (ie a "law") to protect you focus on details that are easy to get missed. One great protection for debtors is that when a creditor seeks more money than they are owed, depending on the circumstances, the penalty can be severe. Severe, in the civil context, means money, and in this context what it could mean is that the creditor will be prevented from seeking any attorney fees or interest for all time on the ENTIRE judgment. See RCW 19.16.250 (prohibited practices) and RCW 19.16.450 (penalties for violating 19.16.250).

When computing the judgment shown here, because of how it was drafted, it would be easy to just say the annual interest is 21953.05 * .12. It isn't though, because only PARTS of the judgment accrue interest. The other parts do not.

Stay simple out there, my friends.