CIV-511 (11/12)(blue cvr) (To be used only with form CIV-510) Keep this booklet for future use. Court staff generally can inform you about court procedures, court rules, court records, and forms. Court staff must remain neutral and impartial. They are not allowed to give legal advice. Court staff cannot: advise you how statutes and rules apply to your case, tell you whether the documents you prepare properly present your case, tell you what the best procedures are to accomplish a particular objective, or interpret laws for you. If you need help with your case, you should talk to a lawyer. November 2012 ALASKA COURT SYSTEM This booklet and most of the forms mentioned in it are available on the http://www.courts.alaska.gov/forms/index.htm American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com CIV-511 (11/12) JUDGMENT DEBTOR BOOKLET 251 Copyright 1984, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1991, 1992, 1997, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2010, and 2012 Alaska Court System. All rights reserved. Permission to reproduce the contents of this booklet, but not for profit, is hereby granted to governmental and non-profit educational institutions. However, reproduction of any part of this booklet for commercial purposes without the express written permission of the Alaska Court System is strictly prohibited. American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com CIV-511 (11/12) JUDGMENT DEBTOR BOOKLET TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Introduction I. What May Happen If You Do Not Pay A Judgment Against You ......................................1 II. Exemptions ..........................................................................................................................4 III. Claims Enforceable Against Exempt Property ..................................................................18 IV. Federal Regulations for Protecting Accounts with Federal Benefit Payments ..................19 V. Glossary (Definition of Words) .........................................................................................20 American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com CIV-511 (11/12) JUDGMENT DEBTOR BOOKLET INTRODUCTION Attention Debtor: If the creditor has NOT already seized the property listed in the enclosed creditor affidavit, you need to keep this booklet and the claim of exemptions form until your property is taken so you can claim your exemptions at that time. If the creditor has already affidavit, you need to file any claim of exemptions right away. You also need to keep this booklet and a copy of all the forms you received for at least 45 days in case the creditor seizes more of your property. If additional property listed in the enclosed within 45 days, the creditor is not required to send you additional booklets or notices. A "judgment" is a judge's written decision in a court case. The judgment states who owes money, to whom the money is owed and how much is owed. The "judgment creditor" is the person who is owed the amount stated in the judgment. The "judgment debtor" is the person who owes the judgment creditor the amount stated in the judgment. This booklet is a basic explanation of the legal procedure which may be used to take your property from you in order to pay the judgment against you. The booklet outlines the rights you may have to protect your property from being taken away from you permanently. The word "property" is used in this booklet to mean anything you own. For more information, you may want to read the Alaska Statutes on execution procedures: Chapter 35 and Chapter 38 of Title 9 of the Alaska Statutes (abbreviated as AS 09.35.010 etc. and AS 09.38.010 etc.). Be sure to check the supplement to see if any of the statutes have been amended. You can find the statutes online at www.legis.state.ak.us/basis/folio.asp . You may also want to read Civil Rule 69 in the Alaska Rules of Court. Civil Rule 69 is also online at: https://public.courts.alaska.gov/web/rules/docs/civ.pdf You may want to contact a lawyer for assistance. If you do not have a lawyer, the Lawyer Referral Service of the Alaska Bar Association may be able to help you find a lawyer. Call 272-0352 in Anchorage or 800-770-9999 if you are outside Anchorage (toll free within Alaska). There may be some words used in this booklet which are unfamiliar to you or which have special meanings when used in this type of legal procedure. The Glossary, which begins on page 20, may be helpful to you. American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com CIV-511 (11/12) JUDGMENT DEBTOR BOOKLET 1 I. WHAT MAY HAPPEN IF YOU DO NOT PAY A COURT JUDGMENT AGAINST YOU A. YOUR PROPERTY CAN BE SEIZED BY COURT ORDER If you do not pay a court judgment, your creditor can ask the court for a court order (called a "writ of execution") which allows the creditor to seize some of your property and sell it to pay your debt. If the court issues a WRIT OF EXECUTION against you and if your creditor uses the WRIT to seize (levy upon*) some of your property, you will need to act quickly if you want to try to protect your property from being taken from you permanently. Within three days after seizing any of your property, your creditor must send you a notice telling you what was seized and your right to claim that your property is "exempt." "Exempt" means "protected by law from being taken permanently from you to pay the judgment against you." This is explained more fully in the section on Exemptions, beginning on page 4. Exception: The creditor is not required to send you additional notices or documents for a second or subsequent seizure if (1) you were already served property that was seized by the second or subsequent seizure. B. HOW TO CLAIM AN "EXEMPTION" If you want to try to protect some of the property your creditor has seized or plans to seize, you must act quickly. 1. As soon as you receive the NOTICE OF LEVY * from your creditor, look at the CREDITOR'S AFFIDAVIT attached to the NOTICE to see what your creditor has seized or plans to seize. 2. Then look at the Exemptions section of this booklet, beginning on page 4, to see if you may claim that any of the property is "exempt." 3. If the property has already been seized, fill out the CLAIM OF EXEMPTIONS form which is attached to the NOTICE. If the property has not yet been seized, you may want to wait to fill out the CLAIM OF EXEMPTIONS form until you know exactly what has been seized. If you file your claim before anything has been seized, the court may not be able to decide your claim. 4. File this CLAIM OF EXEMPTIONS form with the clerk of court at the address shown on the NOTICE within 15 days of the date your property was seized. (Note: You may either mail the CLAIM form to the clerk or deliver it in person. However, if you mail it, it must arrive at the clerk's office within 15 days from the date your property was seized.) Note: If another seizure oAFFIDAVIT occurs within the next 45 days, you may not receive another one of these notices but you will still have the right to claim exemptions. * "Levy" means to seize property under the authority of a court order for the purpose of collecting a debt. American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com CIV-511 (11/12) JUDGMENT DEBTOR BOOKLET 2 Your 15 days to claim exemptions will begin the date the court receives the seized property. To find the date: a. https://records.courts.alaska.gov/ b. Select Search Cases near the bottom of the page. c. If you know your case number, enter it on the Search page. If you do not know the casyour last name and first name in the spaces provided. d. or hit the enter key. e. Click on the case number you wish to research. f. . g. Under the Docket tab, scroll down to view any on Execution & Payment. Docket Text the date the court received the money. BE AWARE: Even though the law says you are entitled to an exemption, you will not be given the exemption unless you claim it. You must claim your exemptions or you will lose them. YOU MUST FILE YOUR CLAIM WITHIN 15 DAYS after your property is seized. Additional copies of the claim of exemption forms and other court forms are available from the court clerk or online at: www.courts.alaska.gov/forms/index.htm#civ. C. AFTER YOU FILE YOUR CLAIM After you file your CLAIM OF EXEMPTIONS with the c