By Timothy D. Hedrick and Mark S. Mitchell
Creditors and debtors should be aware of the lifespan of money judgments, as well as judgment liens on real and personal property. This blog is intended to address, under Florida law, judgments liens on real property, judgment liens on personal property, and the lifespan of the judgment itself.
First, by recording a certified copy of a money judgment in the public records of a particular county, a judgment creditor may obtain a lien on the judgment debtor’s non-exempt real property in that county. [1] This lien initially lasts for a period of ten years. [2] The creditor may extend the judgment lien for an additional ten years by re-recording a certified copy of the judgment before the lien expires (i.e., before the passage of ten years from the initial recording) and recording an affidavit with the judgment creditor’s current address. [3] A judgment lien on real property arising from a recorded judgment may not encumber real property for more than a total of twenty years. [4]
Second, to obtain a lien on the judgment debtor’s non-exempt personal property, [5] a creditor may file a judgment lien certificate with the Florida Secretary of State. [6] A judgment lien certificate is initially valid for a period of five years. [7] The creditor may extend the judgment lien certificate an additional five years by filing a second judgment lien certificate within six months before or six months after the initial judgment lien certificate is scheduled to lapse. [8] No further judgment lien certificates may be filed after the second judgment lien certificate, meaning a lien on personal property arising from a judgment lien certificate may not encumber personal property for more than a total of ten years. [9]
The lifespan of the money judgment itself, or the period within which it may be enforced, is less clear. Several Florida courts have held that the time period within which a creditor may enforce a judgment is limited to twenty years. [10] During that period, the judgment creditor may enforce a judgment by, for example, obtaining a writ of execution and delivering it to the sheriff to levy on specific personal property belonging to the judgment debtor, even after that creditor’s judgment lien certificate has expired. [11] However, the same Florida courts have recognized that a creditor may bring an action within the twenty-year period to obtain a new judgment. [12]
[1] § 55.10(1), Fla. Stat.
[2] Id.
[3] § 55.10(2), Fla. Stat. The extension is effective from the date the judgment is re-recorded. Id.
[4] § 55.10(3), Fla. Stat.
[5] A judgment lien certificate does not act as a lien on fixtures, money, negotiable instruments, or mortgages. § 55.202, Fla. Stat.
[6] § 55.202, Fla. Stat.
[7] § 55.204, Fla. Stat.
[8] Id. The second judgment lien certificate is considered an entirely new judgment lien certificate, not a continuation of the prior judgment lien certificate. As such, the date the second judgment lien certificate is filed establishes a new date for purposes of that creditor’s judgment lien priority.
[9] Id. The ten-year period assumes the creditor files its second judgment lien certificate on the five-year anniversary of its first judgment lien certificate. Separately, liens securing the payment of child support or tax obligations under § 95.091(1)(b), Florida Statutes, lapse twenty years after the warrant or other document required by law to establish a lien. § 55.204(2), Fla. Stat.
[10] Burshan v. Nat. Union Fire Ins. , 805 So. 2d 835, 839 (Fla. 4th DCA 2001); Marsh v. Patchett , 788 So. 2d 353, 354 (Fla. 3d DCA 2001); see also § 55.081, Fla. Stat.
[11] § 55.205(1), Fla. Stat. Any property levied in this manner is subject to outstanding liens held by other judgment creditors. Id.
[12] Burshan , 805 So. 2d at 841; Marsh , 788 So. 2d at 355; Adams v. Adams , 691 So. 2d, 10, 11 (Fla. 4th DCA 1997).