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Are insurance commissions protected wages from garnishment in the event I have a judgement against me. I live in SC.
Optional Information: State/Country relating to question: South Carolina
Are you an employee and are the commissions paid by an employer?
I am an insurance agent. I broker for many comopanies and am 1099'd for my income.
You're an independent agent? If so are you a sole proprietor or do you get paid through some type of corporation?
I'm a sole proprietor. Commissions are paid to me in my name
And on what kind of debt would you anticipate that someone would issue a garnishment order? Would it be a consumer debt?
no, it would be from a business judgement against me personally
What type of "business judgment"? The reason I am asking is "consumer" in this context is a little broader than the common meaning and, in addition, most of the protections against garnishments are based on consumer debts.
It was for a noncompete violation
Unfortunately, the exclusion for non-consumer actions is only $5000 as set forth in Section 15-41-30(A)(5) which you can see at http://www.scstatehouse.gov/code/t15c041.php . This exemption is only possible if you are not claiming a homestead exemption.If it were a consumer transaction then the entire amounts would be exempt since commissions are the same as earnings.However, you may want to consider forming a corporation and having the payments made to the corporation and then having the corporation pay you a salary.If you would like any additional information or have more questions please don’t hesitate to ask! Please DO NOT use the rating system to ask for more information as it gives a NEGATIVE rating if you answer either “Helped a Little” or “I Expected More”.Thank you for allowing me to assist you. As you know, we work on the honor system here and cannot always provide you answers that you like but I believe I have answered all of the questions you asked and would ask that you issue a positive rating on what has been done so far of either of “Got the Job Done”, “Informative and Helpful” or “Great Job”. Even after you issue the rating you can still ask for additional information, but the rating system allows us to judge how we are doing and a rating of "Helped a little" or "I expected more" is considered to be a negative rating on my ability, so I’d ask you to issue a rating of “Got the Job Done”, “Informative and Helpful” or “Great Job”, even if you have additional questions.I believe in giving information that is to the point, but please remember that I can only base our answers on the information you provide and sometimes a misunderstanding as to what you are looking for or already know occurs so feel free to ask additional questions or for clarifications. Be very careful about looking at other internet sites that just post generic information without any inquiry into your facts because often those answers are dated, wrong, or wrong as applied to your facts. Please be aware that my answer is not legal advice, it is merely information. You should always contact a local attorney for legal advice.Several customers have asked how they direct a question to me in particular. If you specifically want me to provide information for you just put “FOR JD 1992” in the subject line and I will pick up the next time I am online.
Experience: Began practicing in 1992 and handled many cases and trials for consumers