§ 1182.Proceedings Deemed Actions - Judgment and Enforcement - Trial and Dismissal - Unmatured Or Unliquidated Debts

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

In one sentenceSection 1182 treats a garnishee proceeding as a lawsuit by the judgment creditor against both the garnishee and the defendant, bars trial of it until the creditor wins the underlying case, and allows judgment against a garnishee even on debts that were unliquidated or not yet due.

Full Text of § 1182

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The proceedings against a garnishee shall be deemed an action by the judgment creditor against garnishee and defendant, as parties defendant, and all of the provisions for enforcing judgment shall be applicable thereto. No trial shall be had of the garnishee action until the judgment creditor shall have judgment in the principal action, and if the defendant have judgment, the garnishee action shall be dismissed with costs, unless the judgment creditor shall perfect an appeal according to law, in which event the garnishment proceeding shall be continued until the disposition of the appeal, and it shall not be necessary to appeal the garnishment proceedings, or make the garnishee a party to the appeal. The court shall render such judgment in all cases as shall be just to all of the parties and shall properly protect their respective interests, and may adjudge the recovery of any indebtedness, the conveyance, transfer, or delivery to the sheriff, or any officer appointed by the judgment, of any property disclosed or found to be liable to be applied to the judgment creditor's demand, or by the judgment pass the title thereto; and may therein, or by its order when proper, direct the manner of making sale and of disposing of the proceeds thereof, or of any money or other things paid over or delivered to the clerk or officer. The judgment against a garnishee shall acquit and discharge from all demands by the defendant or the defendant's representatives for all moneys, goods, effects, or credits paid, delivered or accounted for by the garnishee by force of such judgment; provided, it shall be no defense to proceedings against a garnishee that the debt owing by the garnishee to the defendant was unliquidated or was not due.

End

Amendment History

R.L. 1910, § 4832; Amended by Laws 1913, SB 281, c. 121, p. 232, § 1; Amended by Laws 1965, SB 877, c. 297, § 12; Amended by Laws 1995, HB 1324, c. 338, § 14, eff. 11/1/1995.

Plain-English Summary

Section 1182 frames the legal nature of a garnishee proceeding: it counts as an action by the judgment creditor against both the garnishee and the defendant as parties defendant, and every rule for enforcing a judgment applies to it. No trial of the garnishee action can happen until the creditor has judgment in the underlying case; if the defendant wins instead, the garnishee action gets dismissed with costs, unless the creditor appeals, in which case the garnishment proceeding continues pending the appeal without needing a separate appeal or adding the garnishee as a party to it.

The court's judgment can order recovery of the indebtedness, or conveyance, transfer, or delivery of disclosed property to the sheriff or another appointed officer, and can direct how any resulting sale or distribution of proceeds happens. A judgment against the garnishee discharges the garnishee from any further demand by the defendant for whatever was paid, delivered, or accounted for under that judgment. And it's no defense to a garnishee proceeding that the debt the garnishee owed the defendant was unliquidated or not yet due.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who are the parties in a garnishee proceeding under Oklahoma law?

The judgment creditor is the plaintiff, and both the garnishee and the original defendant are treated as parties defendant.

Can the garnishee case go to trial before the creditor wins the main lawsuit?

No. Section 1182 bars trial of the garnishee action until the judgment creditor has judgment in the principal action.

Does paying a judgment as garnishee protect against a later claim from the defendant?

Yes. The judgment against the garnishee discharges the garnishee from any further demand by the defendant for the money, goods, or credits paid, delivered, or accounted for under that judgment.

Can a garnishee avoid liability by arguing the debt wasn't due yet or wasn't a fixed amount?

No. Section 1182 says it's no defense that the debt owed by the garnishee to the defendant was unliquidated or not yet due.

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: garnishee proceeding as a lawsuit oklahomaunliquidated debt garnishment oklahoma12 O.S. § 1182