Stopping Wage Garnishment Attorney Little Rock, AR
Wage Garnishments Attorneys Serving Little Rock in Arkansas
If your employer received an order from a government entity or a court for a garnishment to withhold part of your earnings to be paid directly to the creditor, you may be struggling not only with a reduced paycheck but also with embarrassment. Furthermore, employers dislike the extra work required to pay the garnishment, which creates additional stress for you on the job. If you are in need of an experienced Stopping Wage Garnishment Attorney Little Rock, AR, contact Dilks Law Firm.
In Arkansas, state wage garnishment law is essentially the same as the federal law governing wage garnishment. A wage garnishment should not leave you unable to live, so there are limits to how much can be taken from your pay. In general, garnishments can’t exceed 25 percent of your disposable (after deductions) wages. Arkansas offers additional protection for certain categories of workers, however. Also, under Arkansas law, the total amount of the garnishment cannot exceed thirty times the current minimum wage.
Child support garnishments can take a much higher percentage of your pay, as much as 60 percent in some cases with an additional 5 percent if you are more than 12 weeks in arrears. Student loan garnishments are limited to 15 percent of disposable income. Tax garnishments vary and have their own guidelines reflecting your number of dependents.
When Can a Creditor Garnish Your Wages?
A creditor, other than a government agency, has to first obtain a court judgment before garnishing wages, so they must sue you for the amount of the debt and win. However, the government can garnish wages for unpaid income taxes, defaulted student loans, and court-ordered child support payments without a court order.
A creditor can also garnish your bank account, and there is no limit to the number of funds they can take, up to the amount you owe. While Social Security benefits cannot be garnished directly, if you deposit your Social Security check into a bank account where it is mixed together with other funds, you can lose it all to a garnishment.
Put a Stop to Wage Garnishment
If you qualify for a Chapter 13 or chapter 7 bankruptcy in Little Rock, AR, all judgment creditor garnishments will stop immediately and permanently. If you are being garnished by student loan, child support or tax collectors those withholdings will stop if you file a chapter 13 case. In a chapter 13 bankruptcy reorganization you are allowed up to 60 months to repay those debts without interest or late penalties being added. Essentially, you turn the tables and the law is on your side to allow you to repay the debt in amounts that you can afford.
Free Wage Garnishment Consultation at Dilks Law Firm in Little Rock
At Little Rock’s Dilks Law Firm, you can take advantage of a free wage garnishment consultation to learn what options might be available to you. We will review your total financial situation, focusing on your debt to income ratio, to determine what relief might be available. If you qualify, we will discuss the pros and cons of filing a bankruptcy to end the garnishment and all other collection efforts on the part of creditors.
Our law practice is limited exclusively to matters pertaining to indebtedness and debt relief. By maintaining a narrow focus, we are much better equipped to handle this type of case than a lawyer who does this type of legal work only occasionally.
Contact today to discover potential solutions to relieve the financial stress that is keeping you awake at night.