A person need not necessary owe a debt to a company -- he can also owe a debt to another party. This debt may be secured in writing, or it may be an oral agreement between the two parties. In either case, the contract is legally valid and the creditor party has a right to collect payment, by force of law if necessary. This may include the use of wage garnishment.
Legitimizing The Debt
If two private parties have an agreement in which one party ends up owing the other party money, then the creditor party may try to extract payment outside of the courts. If this fails, the creditor may attempt to secure payment by legitimizing the debt in court. This is done by filing a lawsuit. If a judge rules that the debt is valid, the debt is legitimized.
Civil Judgment
If a judge legitimizes a debt between two parties, then the debtor party will be forced to pay a civil judgment to the creditor party. This will usually be equal to the amount that the debtor owed the creditor before they entered court. Like all civil judgments, the debt judgment is legally enforceable through a number of means, including by getting an order to garnish the debtor's wages.
Garnishment
A creditor can receive an order of garnishment as easily as a company. He must merely apply to the judge with a motion. If the motion is granted, then the creditor can deliver this order to the debtor's employer -- or another party who provides the debtor regular payments -- and demand that the paying party siphon off a portion of the payments until the creditor has been paid off.
Considerations
While a private party can get a garnishment order in court by himself, it may be much easier for him to do this with the aid of legal counsel who is experienced in contract law. He will be much better able to navigate the court system. In addition, a creditor should know that a debtor may be exempted from garnishment for all sorts of reasons, including having little income.
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