§ 1177.Trial of Issue - Judgment On Answer

Chapter 21: Garnishment and Attachment · Last amended November 1, 1995 · Last verified August 3, 2026

In one sentenceSection 1177 makes a garnishee's answer conclusive on the garnishee's liability unless the judgment creditor serves written notice, within twenty days of receiving the answer or discovery responses, electing to contest it, which turns the dispute into a civil action with the affidavit as the petition.

Full Text of § 1177

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The answer of the garnishee shall in all cases be conclusive of the truth of the facts therein stated, with reference to the garnishee's liability to the defendant unless the judgment creditor shall within twenty (20) days from the receipt of the garnishee's answer, from the date of the deposition of the garnishee, or from receipt of the garnishee's answers to interrogatories, whichever is later, serve upon the garnishee or the garnishee's attorney of record personally or by certified mail, return receipt requested, a notice in writing that the judgment creditor elects to take issue with the garnishee's answer; in which case, the issue shall stand for trial as a civil action in which the affidavit on the part of the judgment creditor shall be deemed the petition and the garnishee's answer the answer thereto. If an issue for trial shall be joined between the judgment creditor and a garnishee resident in another county other than that in which the action is pending, the court may, on motion, change the place of trial of such issue to the county of the garnishee's residence. The judgment creditor may, in all cases, move the court, upon the answer of the garnishee, and of the defendant, if the defendant shall also answer, for such judgment to which the judgment creditor shall be entitled, but any such judgment shall be no bar beyond the facts stated in the answer.

End

Amendment History

R.L. 1910, § 4827; Amended by Laws 1965, HB 877, c. 297, § 7; Amended by Laws 1995, HB 1324, c. 338, § 8, eff. 11/1/1995.

Plain-English Summary

Once a garnishee answers, that answer generally settles the question of what the garnishee owes the defendant. Section 1177 gives the judgment creditor twenty days, from receiving the garnishee's answer, from the garnishee's deposition, or from receiving answers to discovery, whichever comes latest, to serve written notice electing to contest the answer instead of accepting it. Serving that notice turns the garnishee proceeding into its own civil action, with the creditor's affidavit standing in as the petition and the garnishee's answer as the answer to it.

If the garnishee lives in a different county from where the case is pending, the court can move the trial of that issue to the garnishee's home county. Short of contesting the answer, the creditor can move for judgment based on what the garnishee (and the defendant, if the defendant also answered) stated, but any judgment reached that way can't go beyond the facts the answer discloses.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does a garnishee's answer automatically decide what they owe the defendant?

Yes, unless the judgment creditor serves written notice within the deadline electing to contest it; otherwise the answer is conclusive of the garnishee's liability.

How long does a creditor have to challenge a garnishee's answer?

Twenty (20) days from receiving the answer, from the garnishee's deposition, or from receiving discovery answers, whichever is later.

What happens if the creditor contests the garnishee's answer?

The dispute becomes a civil action, with the creditor's affidavit treated as the petition and the garnishee's answer treated as the answer.

Can a judgment against a garnishee go beyond what the answer discloses?

No. Section 1177 limits any judgment on the answer to the facts the answer states.

Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from Title 12 of the Oklahoma Statutes, enacted by the Oklahoma Legislature. Last verified August 3, 2026. · Official source

Also known as: challenging a garnishee's answer oklahomagarnishee answer conclusive oklahoma12 O.S. § 1177