Turnover order in California

A turnover order in California is the topic of this blog post. Code of Civil Procedure section 708.205(a) authorizes a Judge or Commissioner to issue a turnover order. These are used in judgment collections in California by a judgment creditor or assignee of record after the conclusion of a judgment debtor examination.

One of the advantages of using a turnover order is that if the judgment debtor is personally served with a copy of the turnover order and fails to comply they can be held in contempt of Court for violating an order of the Court. This can be a powerful leverage if used in the right situations particularly where the judgment debtor examination discloses the existence of non-exempt property. The turnover order also creates a lien on the property or debt.

Code of Civil Procedure section 708.205 states that,

“(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), at the conclusion of a proceeding pursuant to this article, the court may order the judgment debtor’s interest in the property in the possession or under the control of the judgment debtor or the third person or a debt owed by the third person to the judgment debtor to be applied toward the satisfaction of the money judgment if the property is not exempt from enforcement of a money judgment. Such an order creates a lien on the property or debt.

(b) If a third person examined pursuant to Section 708.120 claims an interest in the property adverse to the judgment debtor or denies the debt and the court does not determine the matter as provided in subdivision (a) of Section 708.180, the court may not order the property or debt to be applied toward the satisfaction of the money judgment but may make an order pursuant to subdivision (c) or (d) of Section 708.180 forbidding transfer or payment to the extent authorized by that section.”

Anyone attempting to collect an unpaid judgment in California should consider the use of a turnover order at the conclusion of any Judgment Debtor Examination. Note that some Judges and Commissioners may order the property turned over to the levying officer which is the County Sheriff in most cases although some may considering ordering the property turned over directly to the judgment creditor or assignee of record, particularly cash.

Attorneys or parties in California who would like to view or download a free sample turnover order for California in Microsoft Word format designed and used by the author of this blog post can use the link shown below.

Sample turnover order for California 

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The author of this blog post, Stan Burman, is an entrepreneur and freelance paralegal who has collected unpaid California judgments since 1992 and has worked in California and Federal litigation since 1995.

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DISCLAIMER:

Please note that the author of this blog post, Stan Burman is NOT an attorney and as such is unable to provide any specific legal advice. The author is NOT engaged in providing any legal, financial, or other professional services, and any information contained in this blog post is NOT intended to constitute legal advice.

The materials and information contained in this blog post have been prepared by Stan Burman for informational purposes only and are not legal advice. Transmission of the information contained in this blog post is not intended to create, and receipt does not constitute, any business relationship between the author and any readers. Readers should not act upon this information without seeking professional counsel.