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Asked about 1 year ago - Knoxville, TN
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I have been served with a "Subpoena Duces Tecum" asking for all my personal financial information. Can they take any of my property to satisfy this debt? ie: vehicle, furniture, etc.
We (my wife and I) live on Social Security and I am disabled.
It sounds like a judgment has been entered against you. If so, Tennessee allows a number of ways for creditors to collect on judgments. They can levy on your personal bank account and take up to the full amount of the judgment (some exceptions apply to SSDI $$). A creditor can place a lien on your home and/or autos, etc. As attorney Walton stated, I recommend that you contact a bankruptcy attorney to discuss the best options for preserving your home and resolving your debt situation. Tennessee has various exemptions that would likely allow you to keep most of your assets. Remember, bankruptcy is simply a business decision and should be viewed as another tool to preserve assets and remove unnecessary expenditures. It’s important that you act quickly as you have little time to respond to the subpoena.
Best of Luck.
Your state has a statute that allows you to exempt certain property from collection. I suggest you find a bankruptcy attorney near you to determine if you have property that is exposed to collection. Your social security funds are not attachable. These are parts of the TN code relating to your exemptions: “Personal
property to the aggregate value of four thousand dollars
($4,000) debtor's equity interest shall be exempt from
execution, seizure or attachment in the hands or possession of
any person who is a bona fide citizen permanently residing in
Tennessee . . ..” Tenn. Code Ann. § 26-2-103. “In addition to
the exemption set out in § 26-2-105, there shall be further
exempt to every resident debtor the following specific articles
of personalty . . ..” Tenn. Code Ann. § 26-2-104. “In addition to
the property exempt under § 26-2-103, the following shall be
exempt from execution, seizure or attachment in the hands or
possession of any person who is a bona fide citizen
permanently residing in Tennessee . . ..” Tenn. Code Ann. §
26-2-111. “The personal property exemptions as provided for
in this part, and the other exemptions as provided in other
sections of the Tennessee Code Annotated for the citizens of
Tennessee, are hereby declared adequate . . ..” Tenn. Code.
Ann. § 26-2-112. “Should a bona fide citizen permanently
residing in Tennessee become a judgment debtor, such debtor
must exercise the exemption as provided in § 26-2-103 by
filing a list of all the items owned . . ..” Tenn. Code Ann. § 26-2-
114.
What creditors can't take from you once they obtain a court judgment is covered by state laws called exemptions. Since these laws vary widely from state to state, I am posting a link to a description of the laws for all 50 states for you to review. For more specific information, you may wish to review the laws directly, and most states post their laws on the state website.
Hope this perspective helps!
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