It just got a little bit easier to enforce judgment liens

Posted on October 20, 2015 by Ben Reeves

By:  Ben Reeves

Last year, we posted It just got a little bit harder to enforce judgment liens, which analyzed a Court of Appeals decision that invalidated a judgment lien against third-party purchasers due to the judgment creditors’ failure to record an information statement along with the judgment.  Lewis v. Debord, 236 Ariz. 57, 335 P.3d 1136 (Ct. App. 2014).  In that case, even though the Court of Appeals found that the judgment lien remained valid, the opinion concluded that the failure to record the information statement affected the “priority” of the judgment lien and rendered the third-party purchasers’ ownership interest superior to the judgment creditors’ lien interest. … Read More »

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Can an Unsigned Minute Entry Create a Judgment Lien?

Posted on January 22, 2015 by Ben Reeves

By:  Ben Reeves

It appears that 2014 was a banner year for Arizona law on judgment liens.  Indeed, we recently posted about the Lewis v. DeBord decision, which invalidates judgment liens vis-à-vis third-party purchasers if the judgment creditor fails to record an “information statement” with the judgment.  The Court of Appeals has again tackled the question of judgment liens under Arizona law.

In Sysco Arizona, Inc. v. Hoskins, the Court of Appeals held that a recorded unsigned minute entry (which awarded judgment in the amount of $395,598.00) did not create a judgment lien.  The reason for this ruling is simple – under Arizona law, an unsigned minute entry (even if it awards a money judgment) is not a formal “judgment” and the statutes require the recordation of a formal “judgment” to create a “judgment lien”. … Read More »

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It just got a little bit harder to enforce judgment liens

Posted on December 16, 2014 by Ben Reeves

LewisQuoteBy:  Ben Reeves

Introduction

As everyone knows, the enactment of the Statute of Westminster II in 1285 ushered the concept of a “judgment lien” into English law.  The statute – for the first time in English legal history – authorized a judgment creditor to obtain a writ of elegit (as opposed to a writ of fieri facias) to take possession of the judgment debtor’s land to pay for the judgment debtor’s debts.  1285 was indeed a very good year for judgment creditors.  Nearly three-quarters of a millennium later, the judgment lien remains an important remedy for judgment creditors.

Judgment Liens in Arizona

Although Arizona law has (for the most part) abandoned the use of fanciful Latin phraseology, Arizona does provide for a “judgment lien” – which (despite the plain, uninspired name) creates a lien against all of the real property then owned or later acquired by the judgment debtor. … Read More »

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