February 2017

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

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,

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. CONT I NU E S ON PAGE 26

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