Minnesota Order for Disclosure: How to Find a Judgment Debtor's Assets

You won your case and docketed the judgment, but you have no idea where the debtor banks, works, or what they own. Minnesota's financial disclosure process is how you find out — and the debtor doesn't get a choice about whether to answer.

How the Disclosure Process Works

Under Minn. Stat. § 491A.02, Subdivision 9, and § 550.011, a judgment creditor can force a debtor to reveal their full financial picture through an official court-ordered disclosure.

For Conciliation Court judgments that have been docketed in District Court, you can file the disclosure request immediately after docketing. (For cases that originated in District Court, there's a 30-day waiting period after docketing — but that doesn't apply to most small claims creditors.)

Step 1: File the Request (Form JGM302)

Submit a Request for Order for Disclosure (Form JGM302) to the court administrator along with a $5 filing fee. The form identifies you as the judgment creditor, identifies the debtor, and asks the court to order the debtor to complete a financial disclosure.

The court administrator then issues and serves an Order for Disclosure, along with a blank Financial Disclosure Form (Form JGM301), by mail directly to the judgment debtor.

Step 2: The Debtor's Disclosure Deadline

The order gives the debtor 10 days after service to complete Form JGM301 and mail it back — but not to the court. Because the court serves the order by U.S. Mail, Rule 503.03 adds three days, making the usual deadline 13 days after mailing. The completed form goes directly to you, the judgment creditor. This protects the debtor's bank account numbers and income details from becoming part of the public court record.

Form JGM301 requires the debtor to list:

• Current employer, job title, and pay information
• All bank and financial accounts
• Real property owned
• Vehicles and other valuable personal property
• Other sources of income (pensions, benefits, rental income)
• Outstanding debts and obligations

This is the information you need to decide which enforcement tool to use — wage garnishment if they have a payable job, a bank levy if they have money in an account, a writ of execution if they own seizable property.

Step 3: When the Debtor Doesn't Respond

If the debtor misses the 13-day deadline after mailing or sends back an incomplete form, you escalate. File an Affidavit in Support of Order to Show Cause (Form JGM303) with the court, paying another $5 fee.

A judge then issues an Order to Show Cause directing the debtor to appear in court and explain why they should not be held in civil contempt for disobeying the disclosure order. This is a real court hearing with real consequences:

• If the debtor shows up, the judge can order them to complete the disclosure on the spot and may impose sanctions
• If the debtor doesn't show up after proper notice, the judge may issue a bench warrant for their arrest
• Cash bail posted after a bench warrant arrest under Minn. Stat. § 588.04 can be ordered paid directly to the creditor

To be clear: you cannot threaten a debtor with jail for not paying the debt. The contempt power applies only to disobeying a court order — specifically, the order to complete and return the financial disclosure form.

Other Ways to Find Assets

The disclosure process is the formal, court-backed method. You can also research debtor assets through public records:

• County property tax records — shows real estate ownership and assessed values
• Minnesota Secretary of State filings — reveals business entities the debtor owns or controls
• UCC financing statement searches — shows secured loans against the debtor's personal property
• Motor vehicle records — available through the Department of Public Safety (subject to the Driver's Privacy Protection Act)

These public searches are free or low-cost and can supplement what the debtor discloses on Form JGM301.

Putting Disclosure Information to Work

Once you know what the debtor has, match enforcement tools to assets:

The Minnesota judgment collection guide covers the complete disclosure-to-enforcement sequence, including a tracking template for the 13-day mailed-service deadline and ready-reference for the show-cause escalation.

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