Legal Project Management Plan & Checklist
Purpose of this Guide: Use this fork when a NSW Local Court judgment has been obtained and you want to recover the outstanding debt by redirecting money owed to the debtor by their employer (salary) or bank (deposit). This is the garnishee enforcement pathway in New South Wales.
Jurisdiction: New South Wales, Australia. The garnishee order is made in the Local Court under the Civil Procedure Act 2005 (NSW) and served on the garnishee (employer or bank) rather than the judgment debtor directly.
The Process at a Glance: The process begins by identifying the debtor's employer or bank. If those details are unknown, an Examination Notice (Form 51 for individuals) or Form 52 (for corporations) can be used to compel the debtor to disclose their financial position. Once the garnishee is identified, Form 69 (Notice of Motion for Garnishee Order) and Form 70 (Garnishee Order for wages or salary, or for debt) are drafted and filed through the NSW Online Registry, paying the Notice of Motion filing fee. The court issues the sealed order. The order is then served on the garnishee at their registered office. The garnishee is required to redirect specified payments to the creditor until the judgment debt is satisfied. The debtor may apply to the court to vary or suspend the order on hardship grounds.
Key Legislation and Case Law: Civil Procedure Act 2005 (NSW) - Part 8 (garnishee orders), s 117 (protected earnings amount), s 124 (order against non-complying garnishee). Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005 (NSW) - enforcement rules. Key forms: Form 69 (Notice of Motion for Garnishee Order - supporting affidavit must be sworn within 14 days of filing), Form 70 (Garnishee Order - wages/salary or debt), Form 71 (Garnishee Order - wages variant), Form 40 (Supporting Affidavit), Form 41 (Affidavit of Service), Form 51 (Examination Notice - individual, 28-day response), Form 52 (Examination Notice - corporation). Protected earnings: the employer must ensure the debtor retains at least $626.10 per week (adjusted biannually in April and October). Employer administration fee: up to $13.00 per payment (this does not reduce the judgment debt). Bank garnishee: attaches only to funds standing in the account at the date of service; future deposits are not automatically captured. Non-compliance by garnishee: under s 124 CPA 2005, the court may order the garnishee to pay the judgment debt amount personally.
* Disclaimer: We're nobody's lawyer, because we aren't lawyers. You are, so you know better than to take legal advice from an app. We also aren't accountants or dog trainers - just digital spirit guides taking zero liability for any of this. This site exists to gather the collective knowledge of practitioners like you. Verify everything and submit your feedback on the Debt Recovery (Applicant) - Enforcement via Garnishee Order matter plan to improve the playbook. THIS IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE, it's a request for input.
This legal matter plan provides a structured workflow for COMMERCIAL_LAW cases, outlining the standard DISPUTE_LITIGATION process. Utilize these tracking templates to manage your legal cases efficiently.
Identify debtor banking or employment details for garnishee targeting.
Draft the UCPR garnishee application forms.
File documents at Local Court for sealing.
Serve sealed order on the third party holding funds.
Receive garnisheed funds and verify debt satisfaction.
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