Oregon Judgment Debtor Examination: How to Find What the Debtor Owns

You have an Oregon judgment but no idea where the debtor banks, who employs them, or what they own. Without that information, a garnishment writ is just an expensive guess — you'd be sending paperwork to institutions that might not hold a dime of the debtor's money.

A judgment debtor examination under ORS 18.265 solves this. It's a court-ordered proceeding where the debtor must appear and answer questions about their financial situation under oath.

Prerequisites — You Can't Just File

Oregon won't grant a debtor exam order on request alone. Under ORS 18.265(1), you must satisfy at least one of three prerequisites before the court will sign the order:

1. Proof of a 10-day demand: You served or mailed a written notice demanding payment of the judgment, sent by certified mail or served in the manner of a summons, and at least 10 days have passed without payment. For a mailed demand, the 10 days run from mailing.
2. An unsatisfied writ of execution: The sheriff returned a writ showing the judgment remains unsatisfied
3. An unsatisfied garnishee response: A garnishee responded to your writ of garnishment indicating insufficient assets to cover the judgment

The 10-day demand letter is the most common starting point. Send it by certified mail with return receipt requested. Keep the receipt and the signed return card — you'll file them as exhibits with your motion.

Filing the Motion

Once you have your prerequisite proof, file a Motion for Order Requiring Appearance of Judgment Debtor with the court. Attach:

• A copy of the entered money judgment
• Proof of your prerequisite (certified mail receipt, return card, or the unsatisfied writ/response)
• A proposed Order for the judge to sign

The court reviews the motion and, if everything checks out, signs an order directing the debtor to appear at a specific date, time, and location.

Venue Rules

ORS 18.265(2) restricts where you can compel the debtor to appear. The motion must be filed in either:

• The circuit court where the judgment was entered, or
• The circuit court for the county where the debtor resides or has their principal place of employment (but only if you've already recorded the judgment in that county's Clerk Lien Record under ORS 18.152)

If the debtor resides more than 100 miles from the place of examination, the debtor must be paid statutory witness mileage at the time of the hearing under ORS 18.265 and ORS 44.415.

County-by-County Variations

How the exam actually works varies by judicial district:

Multnomah County requires that debtor exam orders for small claims judgments be presented to small claims clerks on the second floor of the Multnomah County Courthouse. Examinations at the East County Courthouse are scheduled on designated Fridays. Multnomah's judicial policy generally expects creditors to attempt multiple scheduled appearances before pursuing contempt.

Washington County has debtors appear at the clerk's counter, where they're sworn in and answer questions right there.

Clackamas County conducts examinations on a formal judicial docket with a judge calling the case.

Check with the court administrator in your county for specific scheduling procedures, as these vary and change.

What to Ask

The exam is your chance to build a complete picture of the debtor's finances. Focus on:

• Employment: current employer, job title, pay frequency, gross and net earnings
• Bank accounts: every institution where they hold checking, savings, or money market accounts
• Real property: any real estate they own or have an interest in, in any county
• Vehicles: cars, trucks, boats, and their approximate values
• Other income: rental income, business revenue, freelance or gig work, government benefits
• Other debts: other judgments, child support obligations, federal tax liens (these affect your collection priority)
• Recent transfers: whether they've sold, given away, or transferred property since the judgment was entered

You're conducting a financial interview under oath. Keep your questions factual and specific. "Do you have a checking account at any bank or credit union?" is better than "Where's your money?"

If the Debtor Doesn't Show Up

A debtor who ignores a court-ordered examination is in contempt. You can file a motion for an Order to Show Cause under ORS 33.015–33.155, asking the court to explain why the debtor should not be held in contempt.

The court may issue a bench warrant, but only after proper service of the show cause order. You have no independent arrest authority — the sheriff handles that. Multnomah County typically expects creditors to attempt multiple exam hearings before it will entertain contempt proceedings.

Written Interrogatories as an Alternative

Under ORS 18.270, you can also serve written interrogatories directly on the debtor instead of (or in addition to) requesting an in-person exam. The interrogatories must include a statutory warning that failure to answer truthfully subjects the debtor to penalties for false swearing under ORS 162.075.

Written interrogatories can be served by certified mail, making them easier logistically. But they depend on the debtor actually responding. An in-person exam gives you the debtor in a courtroom, under oath, with a judge nearby if they refuse to answer.

Using What You Learn

The debtor exam gives you the targeting information for your next enforcement step. If you learn the debtor's employer, you file a wage garnishment. If you learn their bank, you file a bank garnishment. If you discover real property they own in another county, you record your judgment there to create a lien.

The Oregon Judgment Collection Guide walks through the entire sequence — from the demand letter that establishes your debtor exam prerequisite through each enforcement tool — with the forms and fee schedules for every step.

See more Oregon guides →