Maine Satisfaction of Judgment: How to Close a Paid Judgment

You're Not Done When the Money Arrives

Receiving full payment on your judgment feels like the finish line, but there's still a useful record to keep. Maine's Judicial Branch small claims guide says the creditor may give the debtor a written satisfaction confirming full payment, but is not required to. The clerk's office does not keep track of payments, so keep receipts and payment records.

A signed satisfaction can help the debtor document payment and update a credit report.

Step 1: Give the Debtor a Satisfaction

If you choose to provide a satisfaction, sign a document that includes the creditor's name, debtor's name, District Court and docket number, and date the judgment was paid in full.

The court clerk does not docket payment information. The debtor may send a copy of the satisfaction to a credit reporting agency to update their credit report.

Step 2: Check Recorded Execution Liens

If you recorded an execution lien under 14 M.R.S. § 4651-A, the lien continues for its statutory term unless the judgment is paid, discharged, or released. Check the relevant public record after payment if it still shows the lien:

• Registry of Deeds — where the real estate execution was recorded
• Secretary of State — where a personal property execution lien was filed
• Bureau of Motor Vehicles — where a titled vehicle lien was filed

If a paid lien is still shown in the public record, check with the filing office about its record-updating process.

What Counts as Full Payment

The enforceable judgment balance includes:

• The original judgment amount
• Post-judgment interest (accruing from judgment entry at the one-year Treasury bill rate plus 6%)
• Court-approved costs (filing fees, service fees, writ preparation)

Private expenses — your own travel, research subscriptions, time off work — are not part of the judgment balance unless the court specifically added them. Don't demand reimbursement of personal costs as a condition of confirming payment.

Record each partial payment and how it was credited. Your final satisfaction should reflect the unpaid balance, including applicable interest and taxed costs, when the final payment is made.

Timing

If you choose to provide a satisfaction, do so after final payment brings the balance to zero. The Judicial Branch guide does not require one or set a day-count deadline.

If payment arrives through an installment order, provide the satisfaction after the final payment — not after each individual payment.

The Maine judgment collection guide includes a fee and interest tracking ledger that calculates the running balance through each payment, so you know exactly when the judgment is fully satisfied and can provide an accurate satisfaction.

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