How to Pay Off a Court Judgment

Paying off civil judgments against you should be a top priority. Court judgment can affect your credit score and credit report for up to seven years. Ignoring a court judgment doesn't resolve the problem. Rather, delaying payment makes it difficult for you to acquire different types of financing, such as mortgage and business loans. Fortunately, there are a couple of ways to pay a civil court judgment and possibly have it removed from your credit report.

Instructions

1

Send a check for the full amount of the judgment. If you want to resolve this issue quickly and have the available cash to do so, contact the court and request the payment information of the plaintiff. Retain a copy of the check for your own records. If you mail the check, send it via certified mail or overnight it. This gives you proof that the check was delivered to the correct address.

2

Establish an arrangement to pay your court judgment monthly if you don't have the cash to make a one-time lump-sum payment. Look over your finances and determine how much you can budget each month or week toward the judgment. Negotiate a payment plan with the plaintiff. Once an agreement is reached, create a contract that outlines the terms. Each party should sign this agreement and adhere to its terms. Submit your payments on time until you have paid off the entire judgment against you.

3

Submit a judgment satisfaction letter to the court once full payment has been made and cleared from the bank. You and the plaintiff should both notify the court that payment is complete. Until the court is notified, the judgment can't be removed from your credit report. Request in writing that the plaintiff notify the court of judgment satisfaction.

4

Request from the court or credit card company that the judgment be removed from your credit report. These are the only two entities that have the power to remove a civil judgment from your credit report. It's very challenging to convince a court or credit bureau to remove a judgment because they both recognize it as a valid legal debt. If it isn't removed, the judgment will stay on your credit report for seven years.

5

File for bankruptcy, if necessary. In most cases, an individual who files for bankruptcy has his court judgments dismissed, meaning he doesn't have to pay them. Consult a bankruptcy attorney before taking this step.