Wage Garnishment Attorneys and Information
Wage garnishment can be a financially crippling situation. To deal with it, you need to understand the role of wage garnishment attorneys and information on the process.
Wage Garnishment Attorneys and Information
Wage garnishment typically comes up in two ways. The first situation involves a legal debt wherein a creditor comes after your paycheck as a means of recovering a court ordered debt. The second situation involves a tax wage garnishment, wherein the IRS or state tax agency garnishes your wages to recover overdue taxes. Either situation can cripple you financially, so let’s take a closer look.
A legal wage garnishment is one where a court has found you liable for something and given the creditor the right to go after your paycheck. Typically, you can see this problem coming a mile away as the creditor must first sue you in court and obtain a judgment. If the creditor prevails, the local sheriffs or marshals will be responsible for contacting your employer and carrying out the garnishment. The garnishment will go on until the debt is repaid, meaning your paycheck can amount to nothing for months if not years. Under federal law, a creditor can only garnish up to 25 percent of your paycheck with a court setting the exact amount. Certain forms of income cannot be garnished including social security benefits, welfare benefits, student loans, unemployment payments, pensions and other retirement incomes.
Need Help with IRS Problems?
Click Here To Talk to a Tax Professional
A tax wage garnishment is far worse than a legal garnishment. Unlike a legal wage garnishment, tax wage garnishments are not limited to 25 percent of your paycheck. The IRS, in particular, is known to routinely go after a minimum of 30 percent of your check and up to 70 percent in unique situation. Obviously, losing such a sizeable chunk of your paycheck makes it practically impossible to put food on the table.
If you run into one of these situations, you need to immediately contact wage garnishment attorneys. Now is not the time to feel sorry for yourself or procrastinate. Good wage garnishment attorneys know how to get you relief from the nightmare. That being said, you have to find the correct attorney. What you are looking for is an attorney that specializes in wage garnishment relief, not an attorney who is the friend of an uncle.
Good wage garnishment attorneys should be able to negotiate alternative payment plans that get your paycheck released and let you live a normal life. With certain tax situations, they may be able to convince the IRS or state tax agency to not only cancel the wage garnishment, but cancel the entire debt as an uncollectible account. Obviously, each situation is different, but the point is to get professional help to deal with your problem. These attorneys are also aware you don’t have money to pay them, and have flexible payment plans for your benefit.
Regardless of the service you use, the most important step you need to take is to do something. Do not let wage garnishments hang over your head. Good wage garnishment attorneys should be able to dramatically improve your situation.