Most collection agencies in the United States hire outside collection lawyers. These collection attorneys frequently have considerable experience in debt collection lawsuits.

First, the lawsuit is filed with the court. Then, the debtor must be notified of the lawsuit by having the court documents served upon him or her, usually in person. The person presenting the documents to the debtor is usually a process server and usually works for a separate process service company, to avoid allegations that service was not done correctly. Depending on local laws, process may also be served by a local Sheriff's Deputy.

Once the debtor is served, he or she must take some action to respond to the lawsuit, though the specific type of response depends on individual state law. If there is no response, the collection attorney will usually request that the court grant a default. A default judgment is one that rules in favor of the collection attorney because the debtor did not respond to the legal notice. Default judgment is almost always granted if the debtor does not respond to the lawsuit.

Once the collection agency's attorney has obtained judgment, he is empowered to take action to obtain the money from the debtor. A number of options are open, depending on the state the debtor is in and the status of the debtor's employment and assets.

Typically, the most effective method to collect on a legal judgment is to garnish a debtor's wages. The court will send or serve an order of garnishment to the employer. This requires the employer to deduct a certain percentage of the debtor's paycheck and forward it to the court, which in turn forwards the money to the collection attorney. Under Federal law, the amount of the garnishment cannot exceed 25% of disposable earnings or the amount of earnings exceed 30 times the minimum wage (15 U.S.C. § 1673). Some states have additional restrictions on garnishment as well. However, depending on the state in which the debtor resides, those who are earning less than $20,000.00 per year generally cannot be garnished by third-party collectors. Also, debtors who are already being garnished, especially in cases of child support, cannot have additional wages garnished. However, not every state permits wage garnishment. At present four U.S. states — North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Texas — do not allow wage garnishment at all except for debts related to taxes, child support, federally guaranteed student loans, and court-ordered fines or restitution for a crime the debtor committed. Several other states observe maximum thresholds that are lower than the 25 percent maximum provided by federal law. States may also prohibit garnishment altogether in certain circumstances. For example, in Florida the wages of a person who provides more than half the support for a child or other dependent are exempt from garnishment altogether (though this exemption is subject to waiver).

A creditor who has obtained a judgment can also execute against a debtor's assets, such as automobiles, bank accounts, and real estate. Every state has specific restrictions and procedures regarding how and what may be executed against. These are often called "execution exemptions." When an asset (other than money) is executed against, it is usually sold, in many cases by a public official such as a sheriff. The proceeds, minus fees, are then given to the judgment creditor. Any excess proceeds are to be returned to the judgment debtor. Judgment creditors may also place liens on certain bonds the debtor may have with the government, such as the bond that contractors are required to have when operating a construction company.

Specific laws and procedures can vary considerably from state to state. Most states have Statute of Limitations laws that limit the length of time from the commencement of delinquency in which a collection agency can file suit.

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