Order For Examination

This orders the judgement debtor to appear before the court and be examined as to their financial means. The judgement debtor is required to produce a statement of financial means detailing assets, liabilities, income and expenditure. Based on this information, and should the judgement debtor’s income exceed expenses, the court may order the judgement debtor to repay the debt at a set amount on a regular basis. This procedure also allows the judgement debtor to obtain further details of the judgement debtor’s financial position to ascertain what further enforcement procedures can be considered, if any.

Should the judgement debtor disobey the court order contempt of court procedures can be considered, namely periodic detention and committal to prison. However it should be noted that a Limited Liability Company couldn't be forced to undergo contempt of court procedures.

Attachment Order

An attachment order is very rarely obtained if the judgment debtor is a limited liability company and can only be obtained following an Order for Examination.

An attachment order is an order served on the judgement debtor’s "employer" and attached to the judgement debtor’s "salary or wages". "Employer and Salary" or "Wages" are defined in the District Courts Act, 1947, and include government departments.

Such an order creates a charge upon any salary or wages of the judgement debtor. The employer is obliged to make deductions (as ordered by the court) and to make those payments to the person specified in the order, (the judgement creditor), no later that the 20th day of the following month in which the deduction was made.

Distress Warrant

Once granted, a distress warrant authorises/instructs the court bailiff to make demand for payment and, should the judgement debtor be unable to pay, to seize goods to the value of the debt and sell the same at public auction. However the judgement debtor is allowed to keep household furniture and effects to the value of $2,000 and tools of trade to the value of $500.

We do not recommend this procedure unless an order for examination has been undertaken. As the judgement debtor must list their assets, and any charges upon the same, at an examination, it clearly provides details of which assets the debtor owns. This defeats the common defence of an asset being subject to a hire purchase agreement or being owned by another member of the premises.