(1) Except as provided in subsection (6) of this section, if a writ of garnishment is delivered to a financial institution that has an account of the debtor, the financial institution shall conduct a garnishment account review of all accounts in the name of the debtor before taking any other action that may affect funds in those accounts. If the financial institution determines from the garnishment account review that one or more payments described in subsection (3) of this section were deposited in an account of the debtor by direct deposit or electronic payment during the lookback period described in subsection (2) of this section, an amount equal to the lesser of the sum of those payments or the total balance in the debtor’s account is not subject to garnishment.

Terms Used In Oregon Statutes 18.784

  • Action: means any proceeding commenced in a court in which the court may render a judgment. See Oregon Statutes 18.005
  • Garnishment: Generally, garnishment is a court proceeding in which a creditor asks a court to order a third party who owes money to the debtor or otherwise holds assets belonging to the debtor to turn over to the creditor any of the debtor
  • United States: includes territories, outlying possessions and the District of Columbia. See Oregon Statutes 174.100
  • Writ: A formal written command, issued from the court, requiring the performance of a specific act.

(2) The provisions of this section apply only to payments described in subsection (3) of this section that are deposited during the lookback period that ends on the day before the day on which the garnishment account review is conducted and begins on:

(a) The day in the second calendar month preceding the month in which the garnishment account review is conducted, that has the same number as the day on which the period ends; or

(b) If there is no day as described in paragraph (a) of this subsection, the last day of the second calendar month preceding the month in which the garnishment account review is conducted.

(3) The provisions of this section apply only to:

(a) Federal benefit payments;

(b) Payments from a public or private retirement plan as defined in ORS § 18.358;

(c) Public assistance or medical assistance, as defined in ORS § 414.025, payments from the State of Oregon or an agency of the State of Oregon;

(d) Unemployment compensation payments from the State of Oregon or an agency of the State of Oregon;

(e) Black lung benefits payments from the United States Department of Labor; and

(f) Workers’ compensation payments from a workers’ compensation carrier.

(4) The provisions of this section apply only to a payment that a financial institution can identify as being one of the types of payments described in subsection (3) of this section from information transmitted to the financial institution by the payor.

(5) A financial institution shall perform a garnishment account review only one time for a specific garnishment. If the same garnishment is served on a financial institution more than once, the financial institution may not perform a garnishment account review or take any other action relating to the garnishment based on the second and subsequent service of the garnishment.

(6) A financial institution may not conduct a garnishment account review under this section if a Notice of Right to Garnish Federal Benefits from the United States Government or from a state child support enforcement agency is attached to or included in the garnishment as provided in 31 C.F.R. part 212. If a Notice of Right to Garnish Federal Benefits is attached to or included in the garnishment, the financial institution shall proceed on the garnishment as otherwise provided in ORS § 18.600 to 18.850.

(7) The provisions of this section do not affect the ability of a debtor to claim any exemption that otherwise may be available to the debtor under law for any amounts in an account in a financial institution. [Formerly 18.619; 2013 c.688 § 4; 2020 s.s.1 c.12 3,4]

 

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