If you fall behind on payments to your creditors, you might find yourself facing wage garnishments to pay off your debt. This can be embarrassing, as your employer will know about your debts, and it can also cause financial hardships as you lose part of your paycheck.
It might seem like there is no way out from this financial hole, but you do have options – including filing for bankruptcy.
A bankruptcy attorney can help you avoid wage garnishment and help you get out of debt. Learn how our experts at the Daigle Law Office can assist and help you get a wage garnishment removed.
What is Wage Garnishment?
A wage garnishment (also called wage attachment or wage withholding) is when a creditor takes money from your paycheck before you receive it. The Massachusetts wage garnishment law protects more of your wages than the federal law.
When a creditor puts a wage garnishment in place, it can remain until your debt is paid off.
Can I Stop a Wage Garnishment?
Massachusetts law allows most creditors to garnish up to 15% of your wages to repay your debts. Nevertheless, there are some circumstances under which a creditor could garnish more. If a creditor has sued you and is seeking to garnish or has already started garnishing your wages, you might be able to stop the garnishment and even get some of your garnished wages back by filing bankruptcy and getting an automatic stay. However, certain exceptions apply.
The Automatic Stay
When you file bankruptcy, an automatic stay immediately stops most collection activities by creditors and prohibits wage garnishments. This means that wage garnishments are halted if the bankruptcy stay is in effect. Creditors must seek the court’s approval to resume collections after a stay is in place. However, the court will only lift the stay if the creditor has a valid reason for doing so.
Exceptions to the Automatic Stay
There are some exceptions that apply to the automatic stay. Domestic support obligations such as child support and alimony must be paid even if there is an automatic stay and are considered priority obligations. These priority obligations are not permitted in the discharge of a bankruptcy.
What Happens to Wage Garnishments After Bankruptcy?
If you file for bankruptcy to get the automatic stay, you might wonder what happens to the wage garnishment after the bankruptcy. It depends on whether the debt was discharged through bankruptcy. If the debt that resulted in the wage garnishment was discharged through bankruptcy, then the creditor cannot resume the garnishment to collect the debt after bankruptcy. However, if your case is dismissed without a discharge, then the creditor can continue the wage garnishment after dismissal.
Can I Recover Wages Garnished Prior to Filing Bankruptcy?
If your wages were garnished before you filed for bankruptcy, you might be able to recover some of your wages if specific conditions are met. You may be able to recover back wages garnished within 90 days prior to your bankruptcy filing. More than $600 was collected, and you can cover the money with an exemption.
A bankruptcy attorney can help you review your wage garnishment and determine if you can recover and collect wages.
Hire Our Expert Bankruptcy Attorneys
If you’re facing wage garnishments, get help from a bankruptcy attorney. They can help you determine how to stop collections. Contact Daigle Law Office today for a free and confidential consultation with Attorney Peter M. Daigle, a skilled and reputable bankruptcy and foreclosure defense attorney in Massachusetts. Call our Cape Cod office at 508-771-7444 or our Norwell office at 781-561-1220.
