Winning parties in civil lawsuits have access to a variety of tools through which they can enforce the judgments they have won. Bear in mind that enforcement is the winning party’s responsibility. Courts do not get involved unless winning parties need further court orders.
One of the more important tools winning parties have access to is known as the transcript of judgment. To explain what this tool is and how it is utilized, I will apply it to a judgment involving a monetary award. These types of judgements are sometimes referred to as money judgments.
More About the Two Parties
Money judgments have their winning and losing parties. The winning party is the party to whom the monetary award will be paid. The losing party is the party required to pay it. These two parties are also known as judgment creditors (winners) and judgment debtors (losers).
In terms of enforcement, money judgments involve collection. It is up to creditors and debtors to work out how payment will be made. If a debtor is uncooperative, a creditor has certain tools at his disposal. This takes us back to the transcript of judgment.
More About the Transcript of Judgment
You might be led to believe that a transcript of judgment is a legal document. It is actually so much more. A transcript of judgment is a tool containing a plethora of essential information about the original court order. Its primary purpose is to aid judgment creditors in their attempts to collect in other jurisdictions.
A transcript of judgment typically includes:
- The names of both parties
- The date of the judgment
- The monetary award amount
- Any other details pertinent to the judgment’s enforcement
It is in a judgment creditor’s best interests to get a transcript of judgment as soon as the court clerk has entered the judgment. That is when a judgment becomes official, by the way.
How a Transcript of Judgment Is Used
While the court keeps the permanent record of a judgment, a judgment creditor or its attorney could obtain as many transcripts of judgment as necessary. How are those transcripts used? They are used to support collection efforts taking place in other countries.
Imagine Salt Lake City’s Judgment Collectors was working on collecting from a debtor who lives, works, and owns property in Salt Lake County. If that’s the same county in which the original judgment was entered, Judgment Collectors is golden. But what if the original judgment was entered in Utah county?
In order for them to go after assets in Salt Lake County, Judgment Collectors would have to have the judgment recorded there. That is what the transcript of judgment is for. It is filed with the county clerk so that Judgment Collectors can pursue collection on behalf of its client in Salt Lake County.
Available Collection Options
The transcript of judgment is required to pursue any and all collection options in the second county. This includes:
- Wage and bank account garnishment
- Debt garnishment
- Property liens
- Seizure and sale of debtor property
Regardless of the collection strategy a judgment creditor chooses to pursue, there needs to be a record of the judgment in the corresponding county. That record is created by filing a transcript of judgment with the county clerk.
One of the best things about the transcript of judgment is that it prevents judgment debtors from moving or transferring assets to another county to avoid payment. As long as a creditor is willing to obtain a transcript of judgment and file it with the other county, legal collection efforts can still be undertaken.