subject: Texas Turnover Relief - When You Assume You've Exhausted All Your Alternatives! [print this page] Okay. You've sent post-judgment interrogatories and deposed your judgment debtor. You have gotten a writ of execution to take hold of property discovered in the interrogatories and by way of deposition testimony. However, right away you find out that the belongings you thought you could get are not easily seized via these common post-judgment collection techniques. What are you to do?
What you shouldn't do is give up. There is an additional tool you may use when you have exhausted all other techniques. It's referred to as "turnover relief." In the interest of complete disclosure let me say that you will not actually have to delay until you have used all other post-judgment collection methods prior to considering turnover relief. However, it can be faster and easier to make use of the other strategies first. And, a few courts still require you to obtain a writ of execution and have it returned "nulla bona" before they're going to award turnover relief. Consequently, the best practice is to at least issue the writ of execution and make the service effort on it first. After that, you can go for turnover relief if you so desire.
So, what exactly is "turnover relief?" It's a procedure in which the court orders your judgment debtor to turn over to you, the judgment creditor, all non-exempt property to pay the judgment you have. What the procedure effectively does is place the burden on your judgment debtor to deliver the property to you in lieu of the burden being on you to find the property by way of the normal post-judgment discovery process. But, keep in mind that the court's jurisdiction in this "turnover order" is restricted to nonexempt property of the judgment debtor that you can't easily attach or levy by means of regular legal process. See Texas Civil Practice & Remedies Code Section 31.002(a).
A further incredibly effective twist to a turnover order is that the court may appoint a receiver to gather the property. If the court appoints a receiver that person's responsibility is to take possession of the property, sell it and give the proceeds to you until the judgment is paid in full. See Texas Civil Practice & Remedies Code Section 31.002(b)(3). Needless to say, the decision to appoint a receiver is entirely within the discretion of the court.
Although a turnover order is in many cases an effective method to enforcing your judgment when all other remedies are unsuccessful, don't get the false idea that it can be the solution to all your collection troubles. It is not. You have got to understand that the turnover order is only available to acquire your judgment debtor's nonexempt property. Much like with a writ of execution there is property that's exempt from a turnover order. But, there is also a lot of property that is subject to a turnover order.
by: Harvey L. Cox
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