What are Citations to Discover Assets?

When someone gets a court judgment, they use Citations to Discover Assets to find out where the debtor has money or property to collect on the judgment. Illinois has three different kinds of Citations:

• Citation to Discover Assets to Debtor: This is used to find out if the debtor has money or property that can be taken.
• Citation to Discover Assets to Debtor's Employer: This is used to find out if the debtor has wages that can be taken (garnished).
• Citation to Discover Assets to Debtor's Bank: This is used to find out if the debtor has money in a bank account that can be taken (garnished)

💡 Important: The law automatically protects at least 85% of your wages from garnishment. You have the right to protect up to $4,000 in your bank account using a wildcard exemption. $1,000 of your money in a bank account is automatically protected from being frozen until the hearing date if your judgment is from 2020 or after.

What is a Citation to Discover Assets to Debtor's Bank?

If a creditor has a court judgment saying you owe them money, they may try to collect the debt from your bank. To do this, they can send a Citation to Discover Assets to your bank.

• This legal notice asks your bank for information about your accounts. The creditor sends the citation directly to your bank.
• The bank must freeze the money in your account up to the amount of the judgment when it gets the citation. This means you might not be able to access those funds.
• The bank cannot release any of the frozen funds without a court order.
• You will receive a copy of the citation. 

The court may schedule a hearing. You are not required to go to the hearing, but it's a good idea to attend if you have any property you would like to protect from garnishment. 

What happens to your bank account?

When your bank gets the citation, they will freeze the money in your account over $1,000.  You will still be able to access this $1,000 until your court hearing as long as your judgment was issued in 2020 or later.  

This freeze generally stays in place until the court decides if the creditor can take the money. While the account is frozen, some things can get messy: 

• Your direct deposits may be frozen,
• You may not have enough unfrozen money in your account to make payments set on auto-pay,
• Checks can bounce if there isn't enough unfrozen money. 

How you can protect your money and property

You have the right to get access to money in your bank account to pay for necessities, but you must go to court to claim these exemptions. 

You have the right to protect the following money in your bank account:

• Up to $4,000 in your bank account using a wildcard exemption,
• Social security, SSI benefits, and disability,
• Pension and retirement benefits and refunds,
• Public assistance benefits,
• Child support,
• Unemployment compensation benefits,
• Workers' compensation benefits,
• Veterans' benefits, and
• Certain other property as explained in this article.

To claim these protections and get a quicker hearing, file an Emergency Motion to Claim Exemption. 

The court will likely schedule a hearing sooner where you can claim your exemptions.