Civil law: debt enforcement

A common question is how a creditor can recover payment of an unsecured debt. If a negotiated settlement is impossible, creditors might begin legal proceedings in their local county court. If, having considered all the evidence, the court decides that the debt is properly owed, it will make a judgment order in favour of the claimant (known as a CCJ). In legal terms, the claimant is said to have “obtained judgment against the defendant”. However, obtaining a CCJ is only the first step in the debt recovery process, the next step is to enforce the judgment.

A CCJ will typically give the judgment debtor 14 days to repay the debt or deadlines by which instalments must be paid. On the making of a CCJ, some judgment debtors will immediately pay the debt in full, in which case the matter is closed. Others may not. They may refuse to comply with the CCJ or simply ignore it. The court will not enforce a judgment order unless it is specifically asked to do so. In other words, the judgment creditor must go back to court to force the judgment debtor to pay.

In England and Wales, various court-ordered enforcement procedures can be used to force payment of a CCJ. They include:

• Taking control of the debtor’s goods (via a warrant of control or, in respect of the High Court, a writ of control).
• A third party debt order.
• An attachment of earnings order.
• A charging order on the debtor’s property (usually their home).

These methods are governed by the Civil Procedure Rules 1998 (CPR) (parts 69 to 73, 83, 84 and 89) along with their accompanying Practice Directions.

A judgment creditor can use any available method; several methods can be used simultaneously or one after the other. Each method of civil debt enforcement method has its own strengths and weaknesses. The right method of enforcement will depend on what assets the judgment debtor owns and if they earn a regular income.

This briefing considers the different debt enforcement methods available to a judgment creditor in England and Wales. It also considers additional enforcement mechanisms, including beginning bankruptcy or winding-up proceedings against the judgment debtor.