Wage garnishment and protection from impoverishment

Tennessee residents are by no means immune to the economic strife and financial strains many others throughout the nation have experienced in recent years. Anyone who follows news concerning consumerism in America is likely aware that credit card debt is a major source of trouble in most states. In certain situations, a wage garnishment order may be issued as a means of collecting payment for debt.

The problem is there are a myriad of households in the United States where families depend on every penny of their income just to make ends meet. If the government garnishes those wages as payment for existing debt, some people could very well be left without food on their tables. To protect workers from impoverishment under wage garnishment, the Consumer Credit Protection Act was implemented.

This law places limits on the percentage of income that may be garnished to repay a debt. In addition to federal law, many states have policies to provide further protection in situations where a person’s wages are to be garnished to pay back a student loan or satisfy debt incurred from unpaid child support or owed taxes. Any creditor or organization that seeks to collect payment for a debt through wage garnishment must request a court hearing.

The debtor in question must be notified of the hearing. If the court rules in favor of wage garnishment, it will then inform the debtor’s employer how much money to withhold from the person’s pay. A person threatened with wage garnishment in Tennessee or any other state always has the right to dispute the debt or request alternative action in order to satisfy a debt. It is usually most helpful to ask an experienced attorney to act on one’s behalf when addressing the court regarding such matters.

Source: FindLaw, “Wage Garnishment“, Accessed on Dec. 21, 2017