Local Rule Rule 69.1: Execution

Rule 69.1. Execution

(a) Generally. No attachment or execution shall be made on wages except as provided by Title 5 Virgin Islands Code, chapter 44, and this Rule.

(b) Order for Garnishment. A judgment creditor, upon application and filing an affidavit that contains a description of the judgment and its amount and states that execution has been returned unsatisfied, and after giving mailed notice to the employer-garnishee and the judgment debtor, may obtain an order for the garnishment of the wages of the judgment debtor.

(c) Motion to Vacate. An employer-garnishee or judgment debtor may move at any time to vacate a lien and continuing levy created pursuant to Title 5, Virgin Islands Code, Chapter 44. Upon receiving written notice of any court proceeding attaching the levy or the judgment on which it is based, the employer-garnishee shall make no further payments until receipt of an order of the Court terminating the proceedings.

(d) Duties of Judgment Creditor. The judgment creditor shall:

(1) file with the Clerk of Court every three months after serving the levy upon an employer-garnishee a receipt showing the amount received and the balance due under the levy as of the date of filing, and furnish copies thereof to the employer-garnishee and judgment debtor;

(2) file with the Clerk of Court written notice of the receipt of amounts from any other source that are credited against the judgment and furnish copies thereof to the employer-garnishee and judgment debtor.

(3) file a final receipt with the Court once the levy has been satisfied, and furnish a copy thereof to the employer-garnishee and judgment debtor; and,

(4) move to vacate the levy within 20 days after such levy has been satisfied.

(e) Failure of Judgment Creditor to Comply. If the judgment creditor fails to file any of the receipts prescribed by 5 V.I.C. § 524(a) or this Rule, any interested party may move the Court to compel the defaulting judgment creditor to appear in court and make an accounting forthwith.

(f) Discovery in Garnishment Proceedings. No discovery under Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 26 to 37 shall be conducted in a proceeding pursuant to this Rule without first obtaining an order of the Court, except that the following questions may be propounded to the employer-garnishee upon written interrogatory:

(1) Were you, at the time of receiving this interrogatory, the employer of the defendant?

(2) State the amount paid the defendant as wages in the most recent pay period.