South Carolina General Assembly
115th Session, 2003-2004

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H. 3710

STATUS INFORMATION

General Bill
Sponsors: Reps. Stille, Duncan, Keegan, Leach, Littlejohn, McCraw, Phillips, Pinson, M.A. Pitts and Walker
Document Path: l:\council\bills\pt\1166mm03.doc

Introduced in the House on February 27, 2003
Currently residing in the House Committee on Judiciary

Summary: Garnishment Act of 2003

HISTORY OF LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS

     Date      Body   Action Description with journal page number
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   2/27/2003  House   Introduced and read first time HJ-37
   2/27/2003  House   Referred to Committee on Judiciary HJ-37

View the latest legislative information at the LPITS web site

VERSIONS OF THIS BILL

2/27/2003

(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)

A BILL

TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY ADDING CHAPTER 42 SO AS TO ENACT THE "SOUTH CAROLINA GARNISHMENT ACT OF 2003", WHICH PROVIDES PROCEDURES WHICH GRANT TO PERSONS WHO HAVE SUED TO RECOVER CERTAIN DEBTS OR HAVE RECOVERED CERTAIN JUDGMENTS AGAINST ANOTHER PERSON A RIGHT TO A WRIT OF GARNISHMENT, SUBJECTING TO GARNISHMENT UP TO SPECIFIED LIMITATIONS SALARY AND WAGES, INTEREST, RENTS, DIVIDENDS, CAPITAL GAINS, BONUSES, AND COMMISSIONS OF THE DEBTOR; AND TO REPEAL SECTION 37-5-104 RELATING TO THE PROHIBITION AGAINST GARNISHMENTS ARISING OUT OF CONSUMER CONTRACTS.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

SECTION    1.    Title 15 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:

"CHAPTER 42

South Carolina Garnishment Act

Section 15-42-10.    This chapter may be cited as the 'South Carolina Garnishment Act of 2003'.

Section 15-42-20.    A person who sues in a contract action to recover a debt or recovers judgment on a contract in any court against another person may obtain a writ of garnishment, in the manner provided in this chapter, to satisfy the judgment he obtains by subjecting to garnishment salary and wages, interest, rents, capital gains, dividends, bonuses, and commissions of the judgment debtor. Except for the above types of income, other types of personal property of the debtor are not subject to garnishment. The term 'property' of the debtor or another similar term, as used in this chapter in regard to garnishment, must be construed in the manner provided in this section.

Section 15-42-30.    (A)    A writ of garnishment may issue pursuant to this chapter only in an action arising under contract.

(B)    Jurisdiction over these garnishment actions is in the circuit court, except that, if the amount of the judgment or the amount in controversy is less than seven thousand five hundred dollars, jurisdiction of the garnishment action is in magistrate's court.

Section 15-42-40.    After judgment is entered against a defendant, the plaintiff may apply for a writ of garnishment. Before the writ of garnishment is issued, the plaintiff shall file a declaration stating the amount of the judgment and his belief that the defendant does not possess property on which a levy may be made sufficient to satisfy the judgment. The declaration may be filed and the writ issued either before or after the return of execution.

Section 15-42-50.    (A)    A writ of garnishment may be issued by the court before judgment is obtained by the plaintiff against the defendant. To obtain issuance of the writ before judgment, the plaintiff shall file in the court where the action is pending a verified affidavit alleging by specific facts:

(1)    the nature of the cause of action;

(2)    the amount of the debt and that the debt for which the plaintiff sues is just, due, and unpaid;

(3)    that the garnishment is not used to injure either the defendant or the garnishee; and

(4)    the plaintiff's belief that the defendant will not have in his possession, after execution is issued, tangible or intangible property in this State and in the county in which the action is pending on which a levy may be made sufficient to satisfy the plaintiff's claim.

(B)    The writ of garnishment obtained before judgment must include a notice to the defendant of his right to an immediate hearing for dissolution of the writ pursuant to Section 15-42-160. Upon issuance of the writ of garnishment, the court shall provide a copy of the writ to the defendant and to any garnishee.

(C)    A writ of garnishment before judgment must not be issued until the plaintiff gives a bond with a surety approved by the court and payable to the defendant in at least double the amount of the debt demanded, conditioned to pay all costs, damages, and attorney's fees the defendant sustains in consequence of plaintiff's improper writ of garnishment.

Section 15-42-60.    Notwithstanding another provision of this chapter, if salary or wages are garnished in the manner permitted by Section 15-42-70 to satisfy a judgment, the court shall issue a continuing writ of garnishment to the judgment debtor's employer providing for the periodic payment of a stated portion of the salary or wages of the judgment debtor as the salary or wages become due until the judgment is satisfied or until otherwise provided by court order. The court shall allow the judgment debtor's employer to collect up to five dollars against the salary or wages of the judgment debtor to reimburse the employer for administrative costs for the first deduction from the judgment debtor's salary or wages and up to one dollar for each deduction after that.

Section 15-42-70.    (A)    As used for purposes of garnishment of salary and wages:

(1)    'Disposable earnings' means that part of the earnings of an individual remaining after the deduction from those earnings of the amounts required by law to be withheld.

(2)    'Earnings' means compensation paid or payable for personal services, whether denominated as wages, salary, commission, bonus, or otherwise, and includes periodic payments pursuant to a pension or retirement program.

(B)(1)    Notwithstanding subsection (A) of this section, the maximum part of the aggregate disposable earnings of an individual for a workweek that is subject to garnishment is the lesser of:

(a)    twenty-five percent of his disposable earnings for that week; or

(b)    the amount by which his disposable earnings for that week exceed thirty times the federal minimum hourly wage prescribed by Federal Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 in effect at the time the earnings are payable.

(2)    In case of earnings for a period other than a week, a multiple of the federal minimum hourly wage equivalent in effect to that set forth in subitem (B)(1)(b) of this subsection must be used.

(C)    The limitation on garnishment described in subsection (B) applies even if the garnishee receives a writ of garnishment in more than one garnishment case naming the same defendant. A garnishee may not withhold from the disposable earnings of the defendant a sum greater than the amount prescribed by subsection (B), as applicable, regardless of the number of writs.

(D)    The provisions of this section do not prevent other types of income enumerated in Section 15-42-20, but not considered earnings pursuant to this section, from being subject to garnishment without limitation.

Section 15-42-80.    An employer may not discharge an employee because his earnings are subjected to garnishment, even if more than one writ of garnishment is served upon the employer with respect to the indebtedness.

Section 15-42-90.    (A)    Funds or benefits from a pension or retirement program or funds or benefits from an individual retirement account are exempt from the process of garnishment until paid or otherwise transferred to a member or beneficiary of the program. The funds or benefits, when paid or otherwise transferred to the member or beneficiary, are exempt from the process of garnishment only to the extent provided in Section 15-42-70 for other disposable earnings, unless a greater exemption is otherwise provided by law.

(B)    This section does not prohibit the attachment of welfare benefits as defined in 29 U.S.C. Section 1002(1) in the control of an administrator or trustee.

Section 15-42-100.    The writ of garnishment also must be served on any appropriate garnishee who shall answer the writ.

Section 15-42-110.    (A)    The plaintiff shall serve on the defendant a copy of the writ, a copy of the answer, a copy of the reply, if any, a notice, and a certificate of service within thirty days after:

(1)    service of the garnishee's answer on the plaintiff if no reply was served;

(2)    service of the plaintiff's reply to the garnishee's answer; or

(3)    the time period for the garnishee's answer has expired if the garnishee did not answer.

(B)    The notice must advise the defendant that he must move to dissolve the writ within the time period set forth in Section 15-42-160 or be defaulted, and that he may have exemptions from the garnishment which must be asserted as a defense. The plaintiff shall serve these documents on the defendant at his last known address or another address disclosed by the garnishee's answer. The plaintiff shall file a certificate of this service in the proceeding.

Section 15-42-120.    (A)    The garnishee shall report in his answer and retain, subject to disposition as provided in this chapter, any money, deposit, or account of the debtor relating to his earnings or income in the possession or control of the garnishee.

(B)    If a garnishee has a good faith doubt as to whether any money, deposit, or account of the debtor is required by law to be included in the garnishee's answer or retained by it, the garnishee may include and retain it, subject to disposition as provided in this chapter. The garnishee is not liable to the defendant or to another person claiming it or an interest in it or claiming to have sustained damage on account of his action.

Section 15-42-130.    If the plaintiff is not satisfied with the garnishee's answer, he shall serve a reply within thirty days of receipt of the answer denying the allegations of the answer as he desires.

Section 15-42-140.    (A)    If the garnishee has no earnings or income of the defendant in his control and does not anticipate receiving or accumulating earnings or income in the future, the garnishee may apply for an order dismissing it from future liability pursuant to the writ upon the garnishee answering without a reply or upon the plaintiff's reply to the garnishee's answer.

(B)    If the garnishee fails to answer as required, he is in default, and a judgment may be entered against him for the amount of plaintiff's claim with interest and costs. A judgment against a garnishee must not be entered before the entry of, or in excess of, the final judgment against the defendant with interest and costs. If the claim of the plaintiff is dismissed or judgment is entered against him, the default against the garnishee must be vacated.

Section 15-42-150.    The garnishee may pay any money, deposit, or account of the debtor relating to his earnings or income to the court. If continued withholding of the defendant's earnings or income is not required or if the garnishee prevails in the action, and after proper disposition of any property disclosed by his answer, the court shall discharge him from further liability under the writ.

Section 15-42-160.    (A)    The defendant may move for the dissolution of a writ of garnishment, unless the plaintiff proves the grounds upon which the writ was issued and unless, in the case of a prejudgment writ, there is a reasonable probability that the final judgment in the underlying action will be rendered in his favor. The court shall set the motion for an immediate hearing. If a prejudgment writ is dissolved, the action must proceed as if no writ had been issued.

(B)    The defendant and any other person having an ownership interest in the property, as disclosed by the garnishee's answer, may file and serve a motion to dissolve the garnishment within thirty days after the date indicated in the certificate of service on the defendant of the plaintiff's notice required by Section 15-42-110.

Section 15-42-170.    A jury must be impaneled to try the issues on demand of a party to the action.

Section 15-42-180.    (A)    If the judgment is for the defendant in the garnishment action, the plaintiff shall pay all costs accruing in consequence of the writ of garnishment action and money brought into the court inures to the benefit of defendant as if judgment had been rendered in his favor.

(B)    If the plaintiff dismisses his action or has a judgment against him on the action, a judgment against a garnishee becomes a nullity, and the garnishee may be awarded costs against the plaintiff.

Section 15-42-190.    Before the entry of judgment, a defendant whose money, deposits, or accounts have been garnisheed may secure their release by giving a bond with surety approved by the court in at least double the amount claimed in the complaint with interest and costs, or if the value of the money, deposits, or accounts garnisheed is less than this amount, then in double the value, conditioned to pay a judgment recovered against him in the action with interest and costs, or so much of it as equals the value. On the approval of the bond, the court shall discharge the garnishment and release the money, deposits, or accounts. If garnishee admits a liability to the defendant for money, deposits, or accounts relating to his earnings in excess of a sum sufficient to satisfy plaintiff's claim, on motion of defendant and notice to plaintiff, the court shall release garnishee from responsibility to plaintiff for any debt to the defendant except in a sum considered by the court sufficient to satisfy the plaintiff's claim with interest and costs.

Section 15-42-200.    The remedy provided by this chapter is not exclusive but is cumulative of and in addition to other collection procedures provided by the laws of this State in effect at the time this chapter takes effect and is optional with the judgment creditor.

Section 15-42-210.    This chapter does not apply to garnishment for income tax purposes or garnishment for child support purposes, which are otherwise provided for by the laws of this State."

SECTION    2.    Section 37-5-104 of the 1976 Code is repealed.

SECTION    3.    This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.

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