You went through the entire legal process. You filed the lawsuit, showed up to court, presented your case — and you won. The judge entered a judgment in your favor.

And then the debtor just... didn’t pay.

If this sounds familiar, you’re not alone. Winning a lawsuit and actually collecting the money are two very different things in Texas. A court judgment is a powerful legal tool, but it doesn’t automatically put money in your pocket. You have to enforce it.

What Is a Texas Court Judgment?

A Texas court judgment is a formal court order declaring that one party (the debtor) owes money to another (the creditor). Texas judgments are valid for 10 years from the date they’re entered and can be renewed for another 10 years before they expire.

Step 1: Locate the Debtor’s Assets

Texas law gives judgment creditors powerful tools to compel disclosure: post-judgment interrogatories, oral depositions, and subpoenas to financial institutions.

Step 2: Garnish Wages or Bank Accounts

Bank accounts can be garnished for civil money judgments in Texas. Once you identify the debtor’s bank and account, you can obtain a writ of garnishment requiring the bank to freeze and turn over non-exempt funds.

Step 3: Obtain a Turnover Order

A turnover order is a court order requiring the debtor to turn over non-exempt assets directly to you or to a court-appointed receiver. It can reach assets that other enforcement methods can’t.

Step 4: File an Abstract of Judgment

An abstract of judgment creates an automatic lien on all non-exempt real property the debtor owns in the county where it’s filed.

Working With a Texas Judgment Enforcement Attorney

At Lone Star Lawyers®, we work on contingency — you pay nothing unless we collect. Schedule your free consultation and let’s talk about what we can do to get you paid.