How to File Satisfaction of Judgment in Washington State

The debtor finally paid. The money is in your account. You're done — almost. Washington law requires you to file a formal Satisfaction of Judgment in every court where the judgment was filed. If you do not, the paying party may file a satisfaction notice with those courts under RCW 12.40.130.

Your Legal Obligation

Under RCW 4.56.100 and RCW 12.40.130, once a judgment is paid or satisfied, the judgment creditor must file a satisfaction with all courts where the judgment was filed. If the creditor fails to file, the party that paid may file a satisfaction notice with those courts.

Confirm Full Payment First

Before filing, audit the balance:

1. Principal judgment — the original amount entered by the court
2. Post-judgment interest — the applicable rate under RCW 4.56.110, calculated through the actual date of final payment
3. Recoverable enforcement costs — the statutory $20 transcript amount, writ-issuance fees, process server fees, the bank's answer fee, and other allowable costs added to the judgment under RCW 12.40.105

Don't file satisfaction until you have accounted for the judgment, applicable interest, and recoverable enforcement costs.

Filing in District Court

Submit the Satisfaction of Judgment form to the District Court Civil Clerk where your judgment is docketed on the civil docket. If the court uses statewide pattern forms, this may be WPF GARN 01.1200 (Satisfaction of Judgment Against Defendant(s)) for full satisfaction or WPF GARN 01.1250 (Partial Satisfaction of Judgment Against Defendant(s)) for partial satisfaction.

The form identifies the case, the parties, and confirms that the judgment has been fully paid and satisfied.

Release Active Enforcement Mechanisms

If you have any active garnishments or executions running, you must release them:

• Active garnishments — File a Release of Writ of Garnishment (WPF GARN 01.0590) with the garnishee (employer or bank) and the court
• Sheriff executions — Send written instructions to the Sheriff Civil Unit to cancel any active writs and return unspent cost deposits
• Supplemental proceedings — If a debtor examination is scheduled, notify the court that the judgment is satisfied

Multi-Court Filing (The Step Most People Miss)

If your judgment was transcribed to Superior Court to create a real property lien, filing satisfaction in District Court alone is not enough. You must also:

1. File with the Superior Court Clerk — Submit a certified copy of the satisfaction to discharge the judgment from the Superior Court execution docket
2. File with each County Clerk — If an abstract of judgment was filed in additional counties, file the judgment court clerk's certificate of satisfaction with each County Clerk where the abstract was filed. This discharges the lien there under RCW 4.56.100.

The lien remains of record until satisfaction is entered. RCW 4.56.100 allows a satisfaction certificate to be filed with the clerk of each county where an abstract was filed, discharging the lien there.

What If You Accepted a Settlement for Less Than Full Amount?

Partial satisfaction works the same way procedurally. File WPF GARN 01.1250 reflecting the agreed settlement amount and noting that the remaining balance is waived by agreement. Make sure any settlement agreement is in writing and clearly states that the partial payment constitutes full satisfaction of the judgment.

Timeline

File promptly after receiving payment. RCW 12.40.130 does not set a specific number of days for filing.

The Washington judgment collection guide covers the complete satisfaction workflow, including a balance audit checklist and multi-court filing tracker.

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