A corporation served with a summons and garnishment in Georgia must file an Answer in the Court issuing the summons. This Answer must now be signed by an attorney licensed in Georgia.

This new rule applies to garnishments in Georgia State and Superior Courts but not in Magistrate Courts where garnishments under $15,000 are often filed.

Previously, many corporations handle the filing of these Answers internally with non-lawyer personnel in human resources, or third party payroll providers.  A non-lawyer cannot now sign the Answer on behalf of the corporation. To do so would constitute the unauthorized practice of law (a possible criminal offense) and the corporation risks being declared in default for failure to file a proper Answer.

Failure to file an Answer can make the corporation responsible for the entire amount of the garnishment, giving the plaintiff a deeper pocket to pursue without the headache of locating the employee as he or she moves through several jobs. 

This new rule: http://www.gabar.org/programs/unlicensed_practice_of_law/upl_advisory_opinions/#2010-1  was announced when the Supreme Court of Georgia approved on September 12, 2011, an Advisory Opinion issued by the Standing Committee on the Unlicensed Practice of Law on June 4, 2010.

Employers may need to rethink how they handle garnishments under O.C.G.A. 18-4-64 [insert link “O.C.G.A.”: http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/gacode/] including:

• Employers served with a summons and garnishment must file an answer within 45 days of service or risk being held in default. If you receive a notice of default judgment, contact an attorney immediately because there is a short time frame for your attorney to try and set aside the default and limit the company’s liability.
• The summons and garnishment can be served locally where the employee works, so employers with multiple locations must train local staff (a) not to accept service where appropriate and (b) to notify promptly the proper company official of any service in order to avoid a default.
• Orders of continuing garnishment required garnishments to be deducted from multiple paychecks and are good for 179 days after service. The company must file an Answer each additional 30 to 45 days or risk being held in default.
• The Georgia garnishment statue [insert link “statute”: allows for the employer to recover some of the administrative costs by deducting from the amount garnished the greater of $25 or 10% of the amount garnished (up to $50).

The information contained herein is not intended to constitute legal and insurance advice and should not be relied upon in lieu of consultation with an attorney or appropriate insurance professional .

About Don Benson

Mr. Benson is a senior trial lawyer and a partner at Hall Booth Smith & Slover, P.C. with over twenty-five years experience helping employers avoid, resolve and prevail in employee disputes. He represents employers in the full range of labor and employment law issues affecting agricultural industry clients including: immigration; OSHA; discrimination, harassment and retaliation; and wage and hour law compliance including over-time class actions, miss-classification, off the clock work, and regular rate calculation claims. Don can be reached at dbenson@hbss.net or via telephone at (404) 954-6947.

About Joel McKie

Joel McKie is the leader of Hall Booth Smith & Slover, P.C.'s Agriculture Practice Group. HBSS is a statewide law firm with offices in Atlanta, Athens, Columbus, Albany, Tifton, and Brunswick. Joel litigates cases on behalf of farmers and agribusinesses. Joel can be reached at jmckie@hbss.net or via telephone at (404)586-6608.

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