Texas law now guarantees that if a creditor freezes or seizes your money or property after a judgment, you get a plain-language notice and a simple form to claim what the law protects, and a prompt hearing.
Added Government Code § 22.0042, requiring the Supreme Court of Texas to adopt rules giving judgment debtors a simple, expedited procedure to claim exemptions when a judgment creditor or turnover receiver seizes personal property; requiring courts to pause proceedings so a claim can be made and to promptly set a hearing once one is made; and requiring a plain-language English/Spanish notice and claim form that courts must accept unless an incurable substantive defect exists. Rules were due by May 1, 2022.
- Citation
- Tex. H.B. 3774, 87th Leg., R.S. (2021), Acts 2021, ch. 934, art. 15; Tex. Gov't Code § 22.0042
- Court or agency
- Texas Legislature
- Date
- September 1, 2021
- Law
- Texas law
Summary
H.B. 3774 was a broad court-administration bill signed June 18, 2021. Article 15 added § 22.0042 to the Government Code, effective September 1, 2021, directing the Supreme Court to build an exemption-claim process for post-judgment seizures. It followed 2020 recommendations from the Texas Judicial Council, which found most debt claim defendants are unrepresented and unaware of their post-judgment protections.
Background
Texas protects a great deal from creditors. Current wages, a homestead, and up to set dollar amounts of personal property are generally exempt from seizure for ordinary consumer debts, and many retirement accounts and federal benefits are protected as well. But exemptions are only useful if you can assert them. When a creditor garnishes a bank account or a court appoints a turnover receiver, money can be frozen before the debtor knows what happened, and before 2022 the procedures for getting exempt funds back were scattered and hard for an unrepresented person to use.
In 2020 the Texas Judicial Council, chaired by the Chief Justice, reported that debt cases were a growing share of civil filings, that most debt claim defendants were unrepresented, and that most judgments were defaults. It urged changes to the garnishment rules, a simple exemption-claim form, and rules governing turnover receivers.
What changed
Article 15 of H.B. 3774 added § 22.0042 to the Government Code, effective September 1, 2021. It requires the Supreme Court to adopt rules that:
- set up a simple and expedited procedure for a judgment debtor to claim an exemption when a judgment creditor or a turnover receiver appointed under Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 31.002 seizes personal property;
- require the court to pause the proceeding for a reasonable time so the debtor can assert an exemption; and
- require the court to promptly set a hearing, and keep proceedings paused until the hearing, once an exemption is timely claimed.
The rules must require a plain-language notice to the debtor, in English with an integrated Spanish translation, that includes the claim form, lists all state and federal exemptions for personal property, and gives information on free or low-cost legal help. The claim form must also be bilingual and include instructions. A court must accept the form unless it was completed with a substantive defect that cannot be cured. Section 15.02 of the bill required the rules and forms by May 1, 2022.
Our take
This statute did not create new exemptions. What it did was make the existing ones usable by people without lawyers, which is most judgment debtors in consumer cases. The requirement that courts accept the form unless it has an incurable defect is especially important, because it prevents exemption claims from being rejected on technicalities.
The Supreme Court implemented the statute with new Rules 679a and 679b and approved forms, effective May 1, 2022. We cover those rules separately.
What it means if you’re sued in Texas
The best protection is still to answer the lawsuit and defend it, because exemptions only come into play after a judgment. If a judgment has already been entered and your bank account is frozen or a receiver contacts you, read every paper you receive, look for the Notice of Protected Property Rights and claim form, and file the form quickly if the money or property is protected. A free case review is available if you want help figuring out what is exempt.
Takeaway
Texas exemptions are generous, but they do not protect you automatically once a bank account is frozen. Section 22.0042 and the rules that followed give you a defined way to claim them, quickly.
Sources
Primary authority
- H.B. 3774 enrolled bill text, art. 15 (Texas Legislature Online)
- H.B. 3774 bill history (Texas Legislature Online)
- Texas Government Code chapter 22, including § 22.0042 (Texas Constitution and Statutes)
Secondary sources
This summary and analysis are general information, not legal advice. Later decisions, amendments or agency actions may change the law; check the current status before relying on it.