Operation Of Garnishee Order

Garnishment is the legal procedure by which a
judgement creditor being armed with the judgement of a court, obtains the control of funds that are in the hand of a third party who owes money to the debtor. For instance Mr. A gets a monetary judgement in court against Mr.  B and Mr. B has refused to pay. Mr. A can ask the court to help collect Mr. B’s money from Mr. C (Mr. C could be a bank) who in turn owes Mr. B. The 3rd person indebted to the judgement  debtor is called the garnishee which the judgement creditor is referred to as the garnishor. The law governing garnishee proceedings can be found in rules of court, the sheriff and Civil Process Act Cap 407, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004 and case laws. Any debt owing to a judgement debtor from any other person within the jurisdiction of the court can be recovered by the judgement creditor towards the satisfaction of his judgement by attachment of debts via a garnishee order.
As a preliminary step, the court will issue a garnishee order nisi immediately an application for the issuance of a garnishee order is filed. The process is instituted in court through ex-pare motion ie without hearing the plea of the other party or even requiring attendance in court of either the judgement debtor of the creditor. The judgement – creditor applies to the court for an order attracting the said sum, the order nisi is served on the garnishee and the judgement debtor, if the garnishee fails to refute the claims that he has an obligation to the judgement debtor, the court may then order, that the order nisi be made absolute as long as the court is satisfied that the applicant stands to be prejudiced if the order is not issued.
A garnishee order nisi is a warning, it is not an order for the bank to pay. Its effect is to freeze whatsoever sums are standing to the credit of the customers at the moment when the order is received. But when the court makes the garnishee order absolute, the bank must pay to the creditor whatever amount the order specifics and may debit the customer’s account with the payment. The payment according to the garnishee order absolute must be made through the court to the judgement creditor. A garnishee order maybe limited or unlimited.
It’s limited when it indicates the actual amount to be attached with the cost inclusive. The order is unlimited if no amount is specified. In situations like this the bank blocks the entire balance of the customer’s account until the court gives further directives.
If a garnishee order is issued to one party in a joint account, the order is not attached to the joint account. In the same manner, if the order is on one or some of the partners in a partnership business, it does not attach the partnership account. But if the garnishee order has two judgement debtors who are joint account holders, it will however attach the joint account and individual accounts of the joint parties. In partnership, as the order is attached on the partnership account it also attaches on the personal accounts of partners. It attaches the account of anyone of the partners for the whole sum of the order because of the principle of joint and several liability.

Nkechi Bright-Ewere