State Codes and Statutes
Statutes > Connecticut > Title52 > Chap906 > Sec52-361aSec. 52-361a. Execution on wages after judgment. (a) Application. If a judgment debtor fails to comply with an installment payment order, the judgment creditor may apply to the court for a wage execution. The application shall contain the judgment creditor's or his attorney's statement setting forth the particulars of the installment payment order and of the judgment debtor's failure to comply. The application shall be accompanied by a fee of thirty-five dollars payable to the clerk of the court for the administrative costs of complying with the provisions of this section which fee may be recoverable by the judgment creditor as a taxable cost of the action.
(b) Issuance. On receipt of the application, a clerk of the Superior Court shall issue a wage execution against the judgment debtor, directed to a levying officer, to enforce payment of the judgment.
(c) Contents. The wage execution shall state (1) the names and last-known addresses of the judgment creditor and judgment debtor, (2) the court in which and the date on which the money judgment was rendered, (3) the original amount of the money judgment and the amount due thereon, (4) any limitation on the execution ordered by the court pursuant to a motion for modification thereof, (5) the portion of the judgment debtor's earnings which are subject to levy thereunder, or the information necessary to determine such portion, and (6) any information which the judgment creditor provides to identify the judgment debtor's employer. The wage execution shall notify any employer of the manner prescribed by this section for complying with the execution and shall be accompanied by a notice of judgment debtor rights and a claim form as prescribed by section 52-361b.
(d) Levy. The levying officer shall levy on all earnings which are due or become due to the judgment debtor to the extent specified in the wage execution plus the levying officer's fee and costs, until the judgment is satisfied, or the execution is modified or set aside, by serving the employer with the wage execution, the required notice of rights and the claim forms. On receipt thereof, the employer shall forthwith deliver a copy thereof to the judgment debtor, or mail such copy postage prepaid to the judgment debtor at his last-known address. On service of the wage execution on the employer, the wage execution shall automatically be stayed for a period of twenty days and shall thereafter immediately become a lien and continuing levy on such portion of the judgment debtor's earnings as is specified in the wage execution, provided if a claim is filed in accordance with subsection (d) of section 52-361b within twenty days of such service on the employer, the stay shall continue until determination of the claim. Any service of process or other notice required under this section may be made in accordance with section 52-57 or by certified mail, return receipt requested, provided a levying officer may make such service by mail only to an address within such officer's appointed jurisdiction.
(e) Service and return. A wage execution shall be served within one year from its issuance and returned within thirty days from the satisfaction of the judgment.
(f) Amount subject to levy. The maximum part of the aggregate weekly earnings of an individual which may be subject under this section to levy or other withholding for payment of a judgment is the lesser of (1) twenty-five per cent of his disposable earnings for that week, or (2) the amount by which his disposable earnings for that week exceed forty times the higher of (A) the minimum hourly wage prescribed by Section 6(a)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, USC Title 29, Section 206(a)(1), or (B) the full minimum fair wage established by subsection (j) of section 31-58, in effect at the time the earnings are payable. Unless the court provides otherwise pursuant to a motion for modification, the execution and levy shall be for the maximum earnings subject to levy and shall not be limited by the amount of the installment payment order. Only one execution under this section shall be satisfied at one time. Priority of executions under this section shall be determined by the order of their presentation to the employer.
(g) Employer responsibilities. Any employer served with a wage execution, including the state and any municipality, shall, upon expiration of the automatic stay of execution and subject to any further stay pursuant to a claim, pay over to the levying officer such portion of the judgment debtor's nonexempt earnings as the execution prescribes until the judgment is satisfied or the execution modified or set aside. The payments to the levying officer in compliance with the execution shall bar any action against the employer for such payments. If the employer fails or refuses to pay the earnings levied against to the levying officer, the employer may be subjected to a turnover order pursuant to section 52-356b and, on a finding of contempt, may be held liable to the judgment creditor for any amounts which he has so failed or refused to pay over. Any amount so recovered by the judgment creditor shall be applied toward payment of the judgment.
(h) Modification. Either party may apply at any time to the court which issued the wage execution for a modification of the execution. After notice and hearing or pursuant to a stipulation, the court may make such modification of the execution as is reasonable.
(i) Assignment of earnings. Any assignment by an employee of his earnings shall be void except (1) payments due for support in public welfare cases and payments pursuant to a family support judgment, and (2) deductions for union dues and initiation fees in accordance with the terms of a duly executed contract between an employer and his employees or a collective bargaining agent or in accordance with a duly executed authorization signed by the employee for the payment of such dues or initiation fees or both to such collective bargaining agent.
(j) Unlawful discipline, suspension or discharge. Notwithstanding any other provision of the general statutes to the contrary, no employer may discipline, suspend or discharge an employee because of any wage execution against the employee unless the employer is served with more than seven wage executions against the employee in a calendar year. An employer who violates this subsection shall be liable to the employee for all earnings and all employment benefits lost by the employee from the time of the unlawful discipline, suspension or discharge to the time of reinstatement.
(k) Status of defendant. Notwithstanding any provision of law, the remedy provided by this section shall be available to any judgment creditor and the status of the defendant as an elected or appointed official of any branch of the government of this state may not be interposed as a defense.
(P.A. 83-581, S. 13, 40; P.A. 84-527, S. 9; P.A. 87-196, S. 2; May Sp. Sess. P.A. 92-6, S. 80, 117; P.A. 97-132, S. 8; May 9 Sp. Sess. P.A. 02-1, S. 107; P.A. 03-2, S. 47; 03-107, S. 9; 03-224, S. 11.)
History: P.A. 84-527 amended Subsec. (d) by providing that the execution is automatically stayed on service of the execution "on the employer" and that the stay continues if a claim is filed "within twenty days of such service on the employer" and by replacing references to "exemption claim" and "exemption" with "claim"; P.A. 87-196 amended Subsec. (f) by changing amount subject to levy by deleting "federal" and adding "the higher of (A)" and adding "or (B) the full minimum fair wage established by subsection (j) of section 31-58"; May Sp. Sess. P.A. 92-6 amended Subsec. (a) to raise fee from $6 to $10; P.A. 97-132 added Subsec. (k) re remedy of section available to any judgment creditor and status of defendant as elected or appointed official not a defense; May 9 Sp. Sess. P.A. 02-1 amended Subsec. (a) to raise application fee from $10 to $20, effective July 1, 2002; P.A. 03-2 amended Subsec. (a) to increase application fee to $35, effective February 28, 2003; P.A. 03-107 made a technical change in Subsec. (i), effective June 18, 2003; P.A. 03-224 amended Subsec. (d) by adding provision re levying officer's fee and costs, deleting provision re service of two copies of wage execution, adding provisions re service or notice in accordance with Sec. 52-57 or by certified mail, return receipt requested, and making technical changes, effective July 2, 2003.
Annotations to former statute:
Assignment of wages held valid. 45 C. 562; change in firm membership held to invalidate assignment. 46 C. 324. "Earnings" equivalent to wages and does not include money due under contract. 76 C. 480. The provision that only one execution against wages at one time shall be satisfied is plain and unambiguous. Statute does not contemplate that debtor receive only twenty-five dollars a week and that additional executions may be levied on the excess. 143 C. 191. Cited. 144 C. 389.
An order will not issue requiring a defendant to show cause why he should not make weekly payments where the plaintiff had not proceeded under this section. 12 CS 155.
Cited. 4 Conn. Cir. Ct. 395. Wages cannot be attached in Connecticut. They can be taken only upon execution after judgment and only to extent of certain proportion of earnings, as fixed by statute. Garnishment of one's bank account by process of foreign attachment, pursuant to section 52-329, is not attachment of wages. 6 Conn. Cir. Ct. 103, 106. Cited. Id., 287.
Subsec. (a):
Does not authorize contempt procedure. 17 CS 296.
Provision that officer should "make service upon the defendant only" not to be construed to mean a wage payment order cannot be made in a case where there has been an attachment. By using word "only" as it did, legislature meant that no one besides defendant should be served. 3 Conn. Cir. Ct. 89, 90.
Subsec. (b):
Cited. 12 CS 80.
Subsec. (d):
Cited. 12 CS 80.
Subsec. (e):
Employer not subject to penalty prescribed in failing to honor the execution where employee misnamed. 12 CS 80.
Subsec. (g):
No written assignment of wages necessary for union to withhold from employee member. 15 CS 37.
Annotations to former section 52-361:
Dissent (2 justices) held that execution against pension benefits for family support should be limited by this section since Sec. 52-352c(d) exemption exception applies to this section only. 178 C. 675.
Cited. 37 CS 566.
Annotation to present section:
Cited. 22 CA 260. Cited. 33 CA 395.
Subsec. (f):
Cited. 33 CA 365.
Subsec. (g):
Cited. 34 CA 816.
Subsec. (h):
Power to modify pursuant to the section does not include the power to vacate. 33 CA 395.
