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F E B R U A R Y , 2 0 1 7
© iStockphoto.com
A
t the risk of dating myself, I recall the song ref-
erenced in the title of this article sung by Anne
Murray. Have you heard this song, or this term,
“snowbird”? Does the snowbird sing the blues?
The term refers to a person who leaves colder climates in
the winter to enjoy the climate of a warmer or more south-
ern state. Often, these individuals maintain a home, per-
haps a condominium out of state. No state is immune from
the mortgage foreclosure and housing crises. Therefore,
some of these snowbirds may own out- of- state homes that
are underwater and these individuals may be delinquent in
payment of condominium fees. Perhaps the delinquent fees
have been reduced to a judgment, and the only asset the
snowbird owns may be the out-of-state, underwater real
estate or condominium.
The assets available to satisfy a judgment are not limited to
the assets or property located in the state where the judgment
was entered. Frequently, the snowbird may have property
in New Jersey that is available to satisfy a judgment, i.e., wages,
Domestication of an Out of State
Judgement in New Jersey
“A Snowbird Sings a
Song He Always Sings”
By Angela M. Morisco, Esq.
Becker & Poliakoff, LLP
bank
accounts
or rental income.
For enforcement proceed-
ings to commence, the out of
state judgment must be domesticated
in New Jersey. New Jersey has a straight-
forward procedure to domesticate an out- of-
state judgment.
The judgment creditor must obtain an exemplified or
authenticated copy of the out- of- state judgment with the
seal of the issuing court. Then, an affidavit is prepared by
the judgment creditor or the creditor’s attorney, that contains
essential information regarding the creditor and the status
of the judgment and whether the judgment was entered
by default. The procedure is governed by the Uniform
Enforcement of Foreign Judgments Act, N.J.S.A. 2A:49A-
16-25. The process applies to judgments or orders of
sister states and foreign country money judgments.
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