How to Collect a Small Claims Judgment in Minnesota

Winning a conciliation court judgment in Minnesota is one thing. Actually getting the money is another. The court does not collect for you — it enters the order and moves on. If the other side doesn't pay voluntarily, you have to take the enforcement steps yourself.

Here's how the process works after you've won.

Wait Out the 21-Day Stay

After the court administrator mails or electronically transmits the Notice of Order for Judgment, there's an automatic 21-calendar-day stay of execution under General Rule of Practice 515. During this window, the losing party can demand removal (appeal) to District Court for a trial de novo. You cannot enforce the judgment until those 21 days pass without a removal filing.

If the other side does file for removal, the conciliation court judgment is erased and the case starts fresh in District Court under formal civil procedure rules. Your enforcement steps are on hold until the District Court case resolves.

Docket the Judgment in District Court

A conciliation court judgment exists only within conciliation court. To use District Court enforcement tools — garnishment, execution on property, judgment liens — you first need to transcribe and docket the judgment into the District Court civil judgment roll.

Request a transcript from the court administrator in the county where the judgment was entered, then file it in District Court. The transcript fee is $40 under Minn. Stat. § 357.021, subd. 2(6); no separate fee may be charged for filing and docketing a Conciliation Court judgment in the District Court of the county where it was rendered. Once docketed, the judgment is enforceable as a District Court judgment.

Discover What the Debtor Owns

Before you can garnish wages or levy a bank account, you need to know where the money is. Minnesota law lets a judgment creditor request an Order for Disclosure requiring the debtor to complete and mail a financial disclosure form about their assets, liabilities and personal earnings.

If the debtor does not return a complete form, you can ask the court for a hearing. If the debtor then fails to appear, the court may issue a bench warrant.

Enforce Through Garnishment or Execution

Once you know where the debtor's assets are, you can pursue specific enforcement methods:

Wage garnishment lets you collect a portion of the debtor's paycheck. Minnesota sets a tiered limit under Minn. Stat. § 571.922: up to 10%, 15% or 25% of disposable earnings depending on income, further limited to the amount above 40 times the greater of the Minnesota or federal minimum wage for each work week in the pay period. Before collecting wages, give the debtor written notice of your intent to collect, request a Writ of Execution from court administration, and have the sheriff serve the writ on the employer.

Bank account levies work through a Writ of Execution. Court administration issues the writ, and the sheriff serves it on the debtor's bank. The bank freezes the funds and turns them over according to court procedure. Certain deposits are exempt — Social Security, disability benefits, public assistance — and the debtor can claim exemptions.

Property liens attach to the debtor's real estate once the judgment is docketed in District Court. A docketed judgment creates a lien on real property the debtor owns in that county, except registered land unless it is separately recorded under Minn. Stat. §§ 508.63 and 508A.63. If they sell the property or refinance, the lien must be satisfied. You can file a transcript of the docket in other Minnesota counties where the debtor owns property to create liens there.

Interest Keeps Running

Post-judgment interest accrues at 4% per year (the 2026 rate under Minn. Stat. § 549.09) from the date judgment is entered until it's fully satisfied. The court system calculates this automatically. On a $5,000 judgment left unpaid for a year, that's $200 in additional interest you're entitled to collect.

When Collection Gets Complicated

Some judgments are straightforward — the debtor has a steady job and a bank account, and a single garnishment takes care of it. Others aren't. If the debtor has no income, no assets, or has moved out of state, enforcement becomes much harder.

A few practical realities to keep in mind:

• Judgments in Minnesota are good for 10 years and can be renewed, so you don't have to enforce immediately if the debtor's current financial situation makes collection impractical
• Out-of-state assets may require you to domesticate the judgment in the state where those assets are located — a separate legal process
• Exempt property can't be touched — the debtor's homestead (up to certain equity limits), necessary household goods, tools of the trade, and government benefits are protected

For the full process of filing a claim through to the judgment itself — including demand letters, forms, fees, service and the hearing — the Minnesota Small Claims Filing Guide covers every step with checklists and deadline trackers.

See more Minnesota guides →