TITLE EIGHT — PROVISIONAL AND FINAL REMEDIES AND SPECIAL PROCEDURES
Rule 50.1. Delinquency
Power. A state judge may hold a defendant in a civil proceeding who fails to satisfy a judgment as a matter of law as delinquent, as provided by 7 R. Stat. § 132.101. Delinquency is a status of the judgment debtor, entered by order in the action in which the judgment was rendered.
Requirement. A defendant may only be held delinquent where the defendant fails to satisfy a judgment within seven (7) days of its being issued, and only upon petition of the plaintiff, as provided by 7 R. Stat. § 132.102. No court shall declare a defendant delinquent on its own initiative.
The Petition.
Who May Petition; Where. A plaintiff may petition any judge authorized to hear civil cases for an order of delinquency, as provided by 7 R. Stat. § 132.103. The petition shall be filed in the action in which the judgment was rendered, under the filing code for a motion, and shall be captioned “Petition for an Order of Delinquency.”
Required Contents. A petition for an order of delinquency shall contain, as 7 R. Stat. § 132.104 requires:
an affidavit declaring:
that there is an outstanding debt as a result of a civil judgment;
that the petitioner is authorized to collect on that debt;
that the defendant has failed to pay the debt within seven (7) days of the order; and
that the collector has attempted to collect the debt and failed because the defendant failed to respond or reply, or the defendant refused to pay; and
a copy of a civil judgment issued by an authorized court of law in the State of Ridgeway.
Additional Contents. The petition shall also state the username of the defendant, the amount outstanding, and the date and hour of the judgment in Coordinated Universal Time, and shall describe the attempts to collect, including where and when each attempt was made.
Service. The petition is served upon the defendant by the electronic filing system upon the Clerk’s acceptance of the filing. The petitioner shall in addition give notice of the petition in the proceeding communications of the case.
Delinquency as a Matter of Right; Exceptions. A judge shall grant a petition for an order of delinquency as a matter of right to the plaintiff, as provided by 7 R. Stat. § 132.105, unless:
the plaintiff has not petitioned in accordance with 7 R. Stat. § 132.104 and subdivision (3)(b) of this rule;
the defendant has indicated that they will be unavailable for a prolonged period of time, and the defendant has also stated a time when they will return; or
the defendant has appeared to contest the order of delinquency.
Where subdivision (4)(b) or (4)(c) applies, the court shall set the petition for hearing and shall decide it on the merits. A defendant who states an intended return shall not thereby defer the petition more than once, and the court may condition the deferral upon the defendant’s consent to a payment plan.
The Order. An order declaring a defendant delinquent shall state the case number, the username of the defendant, the amount outstanding at the hour of entry, the date and hour of entry in Coordinated Universal Time, and the disabilities that attach under subdivision (7). The Clerk shall enter the order upon the docket.
Interest. All judgments and decrees in delinquency shall be subject to interest at twenty (20) percent per week where the debt has not been paid after declaration of delinquency, as provided by 7 R. Stat. § 132.106. Interest runs from the hour the order of delinquency is entered.
Disabilities of Delinquency.
Prohibitions. A person who has been declared delinquent on debt in a court of law may not, as provided by 7 R. Stat. § 132.113:
register a business;
enroll in, be admitted to, or take an examination of the Law Enforcement Training Center;
attain employment in any civil service agency;
contract or otherwise do business with the government;
participate in a judicial liquidation sale or auction;
file civil litigation except for cases of equity against the government which allege grave constitutional violation;
file or petition for an expungement of a criminal record; or
be admitted to the practice of law before the Ridgeway State Bar.
Enforcement of the Litigation Bar. The electronic filing system does not know that a person has been declared delinquent and will accept a case opened by a delinquent person. The bar in subdivision (7)(a)(vi) is enforced by the Clerk’s rejection of the filing where the delinquency is known to the Clerk, and otherwise by motion to dismiss, which any party may bring and which the court may raise on its own initiative. An action commenced in violation of the bar shall be dismissed without prejudice to its recommencement after the delinquency is discharged. This subdivision does not bar a petition under Rule 50.2, a motion in the action in which the judgment was rendered, an answer or other defensive pleading, or an appeal.
Suspension from Civil Service. A person who has been declared delinquent shall be suspended from any civil service employment they may have until relieved from such disability pursuant to 7 R. Stat. § 132.109 or until they certify that they have fulfilled and executed the debt, as provided by 7 R. Stat. § 132.114.
Wage Garnishment of Private Employment. A person who has been declared delinquent shall have their wages garnished and shall be suspended from any private employment they may have until relieved from such disability pursuant to 7 R. Stat. § 132.109 or until they certify that they have fulfilled and executed the debt, as provided by 7 R. Stat. § 132.115. The order of delinquency shall so state, and the Clerk shall transmit a copy of the order to any employer identified in the petition or in the record.
No Other Disabilities. No disability attaches upon delinquency other than those the statutes prescribe. A court shall not, by order of delinquency, suspend a person’s right to appear and defend, to counsel, or to be heard.
Archive; Notice to the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State shall maintain a list of all persons who have been declared delinquent by a court, as provided by 7 R. Stat. § 132.112. Upon an order declaring a defendant delinquent, the judge shall order service of the order to the Secretary of State, and the Clerk shall transmit it and note the transmission upon the docket. The archive is a State archive and is accessible to the general public under 2 R. Stat. § 222.302.
Discharge of the Debt by the Plaintiff. A plaintiff may voluntarily discharge a debt held by a defendant, upon which the debt shall be cleared and the status of delinquency revoked, as provided by 7 R. Stat. § 132.111. The discharge shall be filed in the action; upon its acceptance the Clerk shall enter satisfaction of the judgment, enter the revocation of delinquency upon the docket, and transmit notice to the Secretary of State.
Termination of Delinquency. Delinquency terminates upon:
discharge of the debt by the plaintiff under subdivision (9);
execution and discharge under Rule 50(6) and 7 R. Stat. § 132.126;
satisfaction of the judgment in full, certified by the debtor and recorded by the Clerk under Rule 50(2)(h); or
an order granting post-judgment relief under Rule 50.2 that relieves the defendant from the disabilities of delinquency.
On any termination the Clerk shall enter the termination upon the docket and transmit notice to the Secretary of State.
Criminal Referral.
Offence. A person who has been declared delinquent on debt in a court of law, has failed to satisfy the judgment after two (2) weeks of being declared delinquent, and against whom the plaintiff has attempted to collect through a writ of execution without success, shall be guilty of theft if the amount of debt, excluding interest, is less than $500, or of grand theft if the amount of debt, excluding interest, is more than $500, as provided by 7 R. Stat. § 132.116.
Referral. A plaintiff may refer a case applicable under 7 R. Stat. § 132.116 to the Attorney General, who shall launch criminal charges against the defendant, as provided by 7 R. Stat. § 132.117. The referral is made to the Attorney General directly and is not a filing in the civil action; a plaintiff who wishes the referral noted on the docket shall file notice of it.
Effect on the Civil Action. A referral does not stay the civil action, does not discharge the debt, and does not affect the running of interest. The criminal proceeding, if commenced, is governed by the Ridgeway Rules of Criminal Procedure.