Frequently we are exposed to lawyers who do not know the rules change once a judgment has been entered. For instance, before trial you are limited as to the amount of discovery that can be conducted. You are only allowed to send 25 interrogatories before trial. However, that limitation does not exist when you are collecting a judgment. So our ability to use the rules to gather the information we need to collect a judgment is virtually unlimited, so long as the request is reasonably calculated to lead to information about the assets of the debtor.
Why the Rules Change After Judgment
Before a case goes to trial, discovery limits exist for good reason. The parties are entitled to know each other’s claims and defenses, but courts also have an interest in keeping pre-trial proceedings manageable. The 25-interrogatory cap is a practical constraint designed to prevent one side from burying the other in paperwork before a case has even been tried.
Once judgment is entered, that rationale disappears. The question is no longer what happened or who is right. A court has already decided that. The only remaining question is where the debtor’s assets are so the judgment can be satisfied. That is a fundamentally different inquiry, and Texas law treats it differently.
Post-judgment discovery is governed by the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure as they apply to judgment enforcement, not by the pre-trial discovery framework. The 25-interrogatory limit does not appear in that context. A creditor holding a valid judgment has the right to a thorough, wide-ranging examination of the debtor’s financial life, so long as the requests are reasonably calculated to lead to the debtor’s assets. The policy reason is straightforward: a creditor who has already won in court should not be prevented from collecting what the court said they are owed by artificial limits on the tools available to find the debtor’s assets.
What 90 Interrogatories and 100 Document Requests Cover
When we send post-judgment discovery, we are not casting a wide net and hoping something surfaces. The questions are deliberate and wide. They are designed to map the debtor’s entire financial picture and leave no significant asset class unexamined. The categories we cover include:
Bank and Financial Accounts
Every checking account, savings account, money market account, brokerage account, and safe deposit box. The name of every financial institution the debtor has used in the past several years. Any account the debtor has signatory authority over, even if it is not in their name. Old checks the debtor has written, which, if the creditor kept copies, already tell us where the debtor banks.
Real Property and Real Estate Interests
Every parcel of real property the debtor owns or has an interest in, in any county and any state. The legal description, the county of record, and whether there is a mortgage. An interest in a trust that holds real property. A right to purchase property under a contract for deed. We are looking not just for what is titled in the debtor’s name but for any beneficial interest they hold regardless of how it is structured.
Business Interests and Receivables
Any business the debtor owns, operates, or has an ownership interest in, regardless of whether they are the sole owner or a minority partner. Any money owed to the debtor by a customer, client, or business associate. Any pending contract, commission, settlement, or payment the debtor expects to receive. These receivables are prime targets in post-judgment enforcement. We can capture them before the debtor ever receives the money.
Income and Employment
The debtor’s current employer, salary, and compensation structure. Any self-employment income. Rental income from properties the debtor owns. Royalties, distributions, or partnership draws. In Texas, wages are generally exempt from garnishment, but income that has been deposited and is sitting in a bank account is not. Knowing where income comes from and where it lands is essential.
Personal Property and Equipment
Vehicles, boats, aircraft, and any other titled personal property. Business equipment and machinery. Inventory if the debtor operates a business. Valuable personal property including jewelry, artwork, and collections. We ask for the make, model, year, approximate value, and location of every significant item.
Asset Transfers
Every transfer of property the debtor has made in the past several years, particularly transfers to family members, business partners, or entities the debtor controls. Transfers made after a judgment is entered, or in anticipation of one, may constitute fraudulent transfers under Texas law and can be unwound. A debtor who moved assets into a spouse’s name or into a newly formed LLC right before or after we filed suit has left a trail we can follow.
Entities and Affiliated Businesses
Every LLC, corporation, partnership, or trust the debtor has any connection to, as an owner, officer, director, member, beneficiary, or signatory. Debtors who are sophisticated about asset protection often hold assets in entities rather than personally. We ask about all of them.
Objections Based on the Pre-Trial Limit
Not every attorney on the other side of a post-judgment matter understands that the rules have changed. We have encountered defense counsel who respond to our post-judgment discovery with objections based on the 25-interrogatory pre-trial limit, arguing that we have exceeded the number of questions permitted under the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure.
That objection is wrong. The 25-interrogatory limit applies to pre-trial discovery under Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 190. Post-judgment discovery in aid of judgment enforcement is not governed by that rule in the same way. When a debtor’s attorney files objections based on pre-trial limits in a post-judgment context, we respond with a motion to compel that explains the applicable law, requests full and complete answers, and asks the court to award us the attorneys’ fees we incurred in bringing the motion.
Courts grant these motions. A debtor’s attorney who raises frivolous discovery objections to obstruct collection does not help their client. They add cost to the process, and those costs typically fall on the debtor when the motion is granted.
The rules give judgment creditors wide latitude in post-judgment discovery for a reason. We use that latitude fully, and we do not let procedural obstruction stand in for real compliance.
- The Abstract
- Writ of Garnishment
- Post-Judgment Investigation
- Post-Judgment Written Discovery
- Post-Judgment Deposition
- Motion to Compel
- Motion for Contempt
- Arresting the Debtor
- Discovery Has No Limits
- Motion for Turnover
- Appointing a Receiver
- Writ of Execution
- Property Exempt from Execution
- Spousal Property
Common Questions
Why is there no limit on interrogatories in Texas after a judgment is entered?
Before trial, discovery limits exist to keep pre-trial proceedings manageable while the parties are still litigating who is right. Once judgment is entered, that question has been decided. The only remaining issue is locating the debtor's assets to satisfy the judgment. Texas law treats that as a different inquiry with different rules — and the 25-interrogatory pre-trial cap simply does not apply in the post-judgment enforcement context. A creditor who has already won in court is entitled to a thorough examination of the debtor's financial life without artificial limits on the tools available to find what the debtor owns.
What if the debtor's lawyer objects that we have sent too many interrogatories?
That objection is wrong in the post-judgment context, and we respond to it directly. The 25-interrogatory limit applies to pre-trial discovery under Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 190. It does not govern post-judgment discovery in aid of judgment enforcement in the same way. When a debtor's attorney raises that objection, we file a motion to compel, explain the applicable law to the court, request complete answers, and ask the court to award us the attorneys' fees we incurred in bringing the motion. Courts grant these motions. The cost of raising a frivolous objection typically falls on the debtor.
What are you actually looking for in post-judgment discovery?
Everything that could constitute a collectible asset. Bank and financial accounts. Real property and real estate interests. Business ownership interests and receivables. Income sources. Vehicles and personal property. And — critically — any transfers of assets the debtor has made in recent years, particularly to family members or entities they control. A debtor who moved assets into a spouse's name or a newly formed LLC before or after judgment was entered has left a paper trail. Post-judgment discovery is how we find it.
Can you discover assets the debtor transferred to someone else?
Yes. It is one of the first categories we examine. Transfers of assets made after a judgment is entered, or made in anticipation of a judgment, may constitute fraudulent transfers under Texas law. A fraudulent transfer can be set aside, meaning the transferred asset can be reached to satisfy the judgment even though it is no longer titled in the debtor's name. We ask about every significant transfer the debtor has made in the past several years, who received the asset, what was paid for it, and when the transfer occurred. Debtors who try to hide assets through transfers to relatives or newly formed entities do not always succeed.
Does post-judgment discovery work even if the debtor claims to have nothing?
Often, yes. A debtor who claims to have no assets is making a sworn representation when they answer discovery. If that representation is false — if they have bank accounts, business interests, or property they did not disclose — we use the inconsistency between their sworn answers and the evidence we gather independently to support a motion for contempt. A debtor who lies in post-judgment discovery is not protecting themselves. They are creating a record that makes it easier for us to go back to the court and ask for stronger enforcement measures, including the possibility of arrest.