In California, the fastest a creditor can obtain a judgment and wage garnishment against you depends on several factors, including the speed at which the creditor is able to serve you with a complaint, the speed at which you respond to the complaint, and the speed at which the court is able to hear the case.
Typically, a creditor must first send you a demand letter or initiate debt collection efforts before filing a lawsuit. Once a lawsuit is filed, it can take several weeks to several months for the court to hear the case and issue a judgment, depending on the court’s schedule and the complexity of the case.
If you do not respond to the complaint, the creditor may be able to obtain a default judgment against you within a matter of weeks. If you dispute the allegations in the complaint, the case will typically take several months to several years to be resolved, depending on the complexity of the case and the court’s schedule.
Once a judgment is entered, the creditor may be able to garnish your wages, seize your bank accounts, and place a lien on your property to collect the debt. The speed at which a wage garnishment can be initiated will depend on the speed at which the creditor is able to obtain a wage garnishment order from the court and serve your employer with the order.
It’s important to be aware that a wage garnishment can have a significant impact on your finances and that it can continue until the debt is paid in full or until you take action to stop the garnishment. If you are facing a lawsuit from a creditor, you may want to consider speaking with a debt collection defense attorney to determine your options for defending against the lawsuit.