This toolkit tells you how to set up an installment payment plan and pay off a judgment over time. For general information about this process and your options, read the Articles. Read the Common Questions if you have a specific question. If you want to ask the court for an installment payment plan, use the Forms link to prepare your forms. The Checklist below has step-by-step instructions for requesting an installment payment plan. Go to Courts & Agencies for information about the court or agency that will handle your case.
You'll find links to legal aid offices and lawyer referral services under Find A Lawyer. If there is a Self-Help Center in your area you can get more help there. If you need something other than legal help, look in Community Services. If you need a fee waiver, an interpreter, a court to accommodate your disability, or more information about going to court, visit Going to Court.
Common Questions
You might be able to get a court-ordered installment payment plan if you have regular income to pay the judgment. Regular income is steady and predictable. It doesn’t have to be exactly the same each week or month, but it should be mostly consistent.
You must also show the court you don’t have other ways to pay the judgment. For example, if you have savings that could pay the judgment, you probably won’t get an installment plan.
You can ask the court for an installment plan when the court issues the judgment. You can also file a Motion for Installment Payments after the judgment is issued.
Use our Do-It-Yourself Motion for Installment Payment Plan tool to prepare your motion. To learn more about how to get an installment payment plan, read the article Getting an Installment Payment Plan.
A court-ordered installment payment plan stops a creditor from garnishing your wages. However, your creditor can still garnish money from your bank accounts or state tax return.
An installment payment plan can also help you budget paying a creditor. It shows your creditor you are trying to pay your debt.