County collection guide
How to collect a judgment in Glenn County
Winning was the hard part, and it is over. A California judgment does not pay itself: the debtor writes a check, or you make the clerk and the sheriff take the money. Here is exactly how that works in Glenn County.
The clocks that are already running
- A California money judgment earns 10% simple interest a year from the day it was entered, and that interest is yours to collect on top of the amount awarded.
- A judgment is enforceable for 10 years, then it dies unless you renew it with EJ-190 before the 10 years are up. A renewal filed one day late cannot be fixed.
- A writ of execution expires 180 days after the clerk issues it. If the levy has not happened by then, you pay for a new writ.
Where the writ is issued in Glenn County
Courthouse
Willows Historic Courthouse
Clerk's window
526 West Sycamore StreetWillows, CA 95988
The writ comes from the court that entered the judgment, not from the county where the debtor lives or banks. Once you have the writ, you can levy anywhere in California, but the levy itself is done by the sheriff of the county where the money or property is.
The four ways to get paid in Glenn County
Wage garnishment
EJ-130 Writ of Execution, WG-001 Application, WG-002 Earnings Withholding Order
The single most reliable route against an employed person. The sheriff serves the employer, the employer holds back up to 25% of disposable earnings every pay period and sends it to the sheriff, who sends it to you. It keeps running until the judgment is paid in full. Consumer-debt judgments use a lower, income-protected formula.
Bank levy
EJ-130 Writ of Execution, plus sheriff levy instructions
One snapshot in time: the sheriff freezes what is in the account the day the levy lands, so it works when you know where the debtor banks and when there is money sitting there. Social Security, unemployment, and other exempt deposits come back out.
Property lien
EJ-001 Abstract of Judgment, recorded with the county recorder
Recording an abstract in every county where the debtor owns or may buy real estate attaches your judgment to that property. It is slow and patient: you get paid when they sell or refinance, with interest, without a sheriff involved.
Debtor's examination
AT-138/EJ-125 Application and Order for Appearance, SC-134 in small claims
When you do not know where they work or bank, this drags them into court under oath to tell you. Failing to show is contempt, and the order can be enforced with a bench warrant.
The Glenn County levying officer
Every levy in Glenn County goes through the county sheriff's civil division, not the court. You hand them the original writ, written levy instructions, and their fee, and they serve the employer or the bank. The fee is recoverable: it goes on your memorandum of costs and the debtor ends up paying it. Call the civil division for the current fee and their deposit rules before you drive over, because those change more often than the law does.
What collecting costs, and who ends up paying it
The court charges a fee to issue the writ, and the Glenn County sheriff charges a levy fee. Both are recoverable costs added to the judgment under Code of Civil Procedure section 685.070, so a collection that works is paid for by the person who owed you in the first place. A collection agency, by contrast, keeps 25% to 40% of everything it recovers, forever, out of money the court already said was yours.
Read this before you file the writ
- How to garnish wages on a California judgmentThe writ, the sheriff, and the paycheck: what a creditor can actually take, and how long it takes to start.
- How to levy a bank account in CaliforniaA levy is a snapshot, not a subscription. What is in the account that day is what you get.
- How to renew a California judgment before it expiresTen years from entry, and not one day more. Renewal is a form, a fee, and a deadline that cannot be excused.
Other Glenn County cases we handle
Build your Glenn County collection packet
Tell us who owes you, what the judgment says, and what you know about them. We calculate the interest and the payoff to the day, pick the routes that fit, and fill the writ, the garnishment application, the abstract, and the sheriff instructions. $149, one time, for the case.
file my case is a self-help document preparation service, not a law firm. Court and sheriff fees change; confirm yours with the clerk and the civil division before you file.