JUDGEMENT PROOF?

[Anonymous]

Anyone know anything about being so called Judgement Proof to creditors and collection agencies? I have a few cards ,two with Capital one that are at high balances. When opened I had a great full time job and had no problem keeping up with these cards for over 5 years. About a 18 months ago I got a double whammy and had two back surgeries, the last one left me disabled. Also a year ago I was diagnosed with Parkinson's, And it is progressing rapidly. I went from stage 1 to stage three in a year. Parkinson's has 5 stages. Parkinson's was added to my List of disability with SSDI. I will be on SSDI for the remainder of my life. My income has dropped a lot. only SSDI now. for a total of 1559.00 a month. I am married but my wife does not make much money either. I talked to a lawyer yesterday and she gave me some free info. She told me as long as my wife is not on my cards as a co-user or co-applicant they can not go after her. She also told me my SSDI being my only income and having no savings,is not Garnishable because it is my Government payment. NOTE. my SSDI is deposited in a checking account with only my name on the account. The Lawyer also told me that My house is protected under what is called Homestead Exempt. The house is owned as joint Tenancy, and my half is worth about 50,000.00. The homestead exempt amount in my state for a house is 120,000.00. So she told me with that State Statue, and my income I am what they call Judgement proof. Mow with that being said. A creditor can still file for a Judgement. But if my status never changes, it is most likely they would never be ever to collect on any said Judgement.

[CreditInspired]

Welcome OP 

I had never heard the term but I’d definitely defer to your lawyer. 

I did Google it and it states:

If you don’t have any income or property that the creditor can legally go after, then you are what is often referred to as judgment proof. The term is a bit of a misnomer, because the creditor can sue you and get a judgment—it just cannot collect on the judgment. 

https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/what-does-judgment-proof-mean.html

Take care of yourself. 

[RobertEG]

The term "judgment proof" is a general term, and not a legal term.

In general use, it does not mean that a creditor cannot obtain a judgment from a court.

It is used to signify that the debtor does not have assets or income that can, under the laws of their state, be attached or garnished as forced payment of a judgment.

Once a creditor obtains a judgment finding the debt valid and ordering its payment, if it remains unpaid,they need to seek additional motions before the court for an order that permits them to take assets or garnish pay in order to satisfy the judgment.

If assets or income are protected, then a judgment may be little more than a piece of paper in value to them.

You will often see, as part of a creditor's actions prior to even bringing a civil action, an investigation, such as by pulling your credit report, to evaluate whether, even if they obtain a civil judgment,they can collect anything.