§ 685.030.When Interest Ceases to Accrue When Money Judgment Satisfied In Full

Title 9. Enforcement of Judgments · Division 1 · Chapter 5. Interest and Costs · Last amended 2002 · Last verified July 28, 2026

In one sentenceSection 685.030 stops interest from accruing on a money judgment satisfied through a writ on the date of levy, or under an earnings withholding order per §§ 706.024 and 706.028, and otherwise on the date satisfaction is received, tendered, or deposited, with partial satisfaction stopping interest only on the part paid.

Full Text of § 685.030

Text sizeJump to: (a) (b) (c) (d) (e)

(a) If a money judgment is satisfied in full pursuant to a writ under this title, interest ceases to accrue on the judgment:

(1) If the proceeds of collection are paid in a lump sum, on the date of levy.

(2) If the money judgment is satisfied pursuant to an earnings withholding order, on the date and in the manner provided in Section 706.024 or Section 706.028.

(3) In any other case, on the date the proceeds of sale or collection are actually received by the levying officer.

(b) If a money judgment is satisfied in full other than pursuant to a writ under this title, interest ceases to accrue on the date the judgment is satisfied in full.

(c) If a money judgment is partially satisfied pursuant to a writ under this title or is otherwise partially satisfied, interest ceases to accrue as to the part satisfied on the date the part is satisfied.

(d) For the purposes of subdivisions (b) and (c), the date a money judgment is satisfied in full or in part is the earliest of the following times:

(1) The date satisfaction is actually received by the judgment creditor.

(2) The date satisfaction is tendered to the judgment creditor or deposited in court for the judgment creditor.

(3) The date of any other performance that has the effect of satisfaction.

(e) The clerk of a court may enter in the Register of Actions a writ of execution on a money judgment as returned wholly satisfied when the judgment amount, as specified on the writ, is fully collected and only an interest deficit of no more than ten dollars ($10) exists, due to automation of the continual daily interest accrual calculation.

End

Plain-English Summary

Interest keeps running until the judgment is paid, and this section pins down exactly when that stopping point occurs. Subdivision (a) covers satisfaction through a writ: a lump-sum collection stops interest on the date of levy; an earnings withholding order stops it on the date and in the manner § 706.024 or § 706.028 specifies; any other collection under a writ stops it when the levying officer receives the sale or collection proceeds.

Subdivision (b) covers satisfaction outside any writ — interest stops on the date the judgment is satisfied in full. Subdivision (c) handles partial satisfaction, stopping interest only as to the portion paid, as of the date that portion is satisfied. Subdivision (d) then defines the satisfaction date for purposes of (b) and (c) as the earliest of three events: actual receipt by the creditor, tender to the creditor or deposit in court for the creditor, or any other performance having the effect of satisfaction.

Subdivision (e) adds a practical housekeeping rule: the clerk may enter a writ as fully satisfied in the Register of Actions even with an interest deficit of up to $10, when that gap results from the automated daily-interest calculation rather than an actual shortfall in payment.

Frequently Asked Questions

When does interest stop on a lump sum collected under a writ?

On the date of levy.

When does interest stop if the judgment is satisfied through an earnings withholding order?

On the date and in the manner specified by § 706.024 or § 706.028.

What if the judgment is satisfied without using a writ at all?

Interest stops on the date the judgment is satisfied in full, determined under the earliest-of-three-events test in subdivision (d).

Does a partial payment stop interest on the whole judgment?

No. Subdivision (c) stops interest only as to the part that's been satisfied, as of the date that part was paid.

Can a small residual interest gap keep a writ from being marked satisfied?

No. Subdivision (e) lets the clerk enter the writ as fully satisfied despite an interest deficit of up to $10 caused by automated daily-interest rounding.

Amendment History

Amended by Stats 2001 ch 812 (AB 223), s 4, eff. 1/1/2002.

Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from the California Legislative Information. Enacted by the California Legislature. Last verified July 28, 2026. · Official source

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