Alabama Judgment Collection Guide — Collect What You're Owed

You won. They haven't paid. Now what?

Winning a small claims judgment in Alabama is only the first half. The court doesn't collect the money for you. It doesn't track down the debtor's employer, freeze their bank account, or record a lien on their house. Every one of those steps falls on you — and the District Court Clerk is legally prohibited from telling you how to do any of it.

The Alabama Judgment Collection Roadmap turns the scattered forms, offices, and deadlines into one enforceable sequence. It maps every step from the moment the 14-day appeal window expires to the day you file a satisfaction of judgment — across the District Court Clerk, the County Sheriff, and the Probate Court — so nothing falls through the cracks between offices.

What's Inside

• 14-Day Post-Judgment Calendar — the appeal window, when enforcement can start, and what to do if the debtor appeals to Circuit Court
• Asset Discovery Toolkit — how to use post-judgment discovery (Form C-58) to compel the debtor to disclose their employer, bank accounts, and property under oath
• Wage Garnishment Walkthrough — line-by-line preparation of Form C-21, the exemption notice (Form C-24D), and how to read the employer's answer on Form C-22, with a worked example showing the 25% disposable-earnings cap
• Bank Levy Procedure — the same Form C-21 adapted for bank accounts, with branch identification rules and exempt-fund protections
• Sheriff Execution — requesting a writ of execution, what the sheriff can and cannot seize, sale procedure, and fee schedules
• Judgment Lien Recording — obtaining a Certificate of Judgment from the District Clerk, recording it in the Probate Court, page fees by county, and what the lien attaches to
• Alabama Exemption Audit — wages, Social Security, disability, retirement funds, homestead, and personal property exemptions under Alabama Code §§ 6-10-2 and 6-10-7, so you don't waste filing fees on untouchable assets
• Interest and Cost Ledger — a worksheet for tracking the running balance: original judgment, 7.5% statutory interest, advanced court costs, and credits from partial payments
• Multi-Office Closeout Checklist — filing the Satisfaction of Judgment in District Court and releasing the Probate Court lien when the debtor pays in full

Who This Is For

This guide is for anyone in Alabama holding an unpaid small claims judgment — whether it came from a contractor who didn't finish the work, a tenant who owes back rent, a customer who bounced a check, or a neighbour who damaged your property. If you have a judgment from the District Court's Small Claims Division and the other side has not paid, this is your enforcement manual.

It is not for people who haven't filed yet (the Alabama Small Claims Filing Guide covers that) or people who have been served with a claim (the Alabama Small Claims Response Guide is the right starting point).

Why Not Just Use the Court Website?

The court's e-Forms portal gives you blank PDFs. Form C-21 is there — but without instructions for filling it out, without the exemption notice you must serve alongside it, and without an explanation of what happens when the employer or bank sends back Form C-22. The Probate Court's recording fees aren't on the District Court site. The Sheriff's office doesn't explain what property is executable. Each office handles one piece of the process and assumes you already know how the other offices work.

This guide connects the three offices into a single sequence, with every form referenced by number, every fee listed, and every handoff explained.

Full Refund, No Time Limit

If the guide doesn't help, email [email protected] for a full refund. No time limit, no questions.

You already did the hard part — you proved your case and won. Don't let the money sit uncollected because the enforcement paperwork is confusing. Get the Toolkit and start collecting what you're owed.

Or download the free Alabama Small Claims Collection Checklist first — a one-page overview of the waiting period, enforcement options, forms, and exemptions — and decide from there.