California Judgment Buyer
We purchase California commercial money judgments from any county. Fully litigated cases preferred. $10,000 minimum. Free evaluation.
$10,000 minimum · All 58 California counties · Commercial judgments only
Statewide coverage
SAC Judgment Collection evaluates and purchases judgments from any California superior court — all 58 counties. Whether your judgment was entered in Sacramento, Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Orange County, or a smaller county court, we’ll review it on the merits.
California judgments are enforceable statewide regardless of which county court entered them. A judgment from Shasta County is enforceable against a debtor who has moved to San Diego. A judgment from LA is enforceable against a debtor now living in the Bay Area.
We enforce using every tool California provides: bank levies, wage garnishments, writs of execution, property liens, and debtor examinations. Our enforcement operations are based in Sacramento, with experience in courts throughout the state.
Major markets we serve
- Sacramento — Home market. Sacramento Superior Court, Placer, El Dorado, Yolo, Sutter counties.
- Los Angeles — LA County and surrounding Southern California courts.
- San Francisco / Bay Area — SF, Alameda, Santa Clara, Contra Costa, San Mateo, and surrounding Bay Area courts.
- San Diego — San Diego Superior Court and Imperial County.
- Orange County — All Orange County Superior Court locations.
- Inland Empire — San Bernardino and Riverside county courts.
- Central Valley — Fresno, Kern, Tulare, Stanislaus, and surrounding courts.
Don’t see your county? We cover all 58. Submit your evaluation and we’ll review it regardless of location.
Purchase criteria
- California superior court judgment — Any county, any district court.
- Commercial case — Business-to-business disputes, commercial leases, contractor payment disputes, commercial loan defaults.
- $10,000 minimum face value — Including any accrued post-judgment interest.
- No pending appeal — The judgment must be final.
- Within the 10-year enforcement window — Or renewed.
How the Purchase Process Works
Selling a judgment does not require attorneys, court appearances, or months of negotiation. Our process is designed to get you from first contact to funded in roughly one to two weeks, depending on how quickly documents can be exchanged. Here is what to expect from start to finish.
Step 1 — Submit your evaluation form. Fill out our brief evaluation form. It takes about five minutes. We ask for the basics: the court that entered the judgment, the face value, the debtor name, the case type, and whether any collection has been attempted. You do not need to upload documents at this stage — just enough for us to do a preliminary assessment.
Step 2 — We review and call back within one business day. Once we receive your submission, we research the debtor, check the court record, and assess collectibility. If the judgment meets our criteria, we will call you within one business day with a specific written offer. There is no obligation to accept, and no cost to you at this stage.
Step 3 — Sign a two-page assignment agreement. If you accept our offer, we send you a standard California assignment of judgment agreement — two pages, plain language. You sign, we countersign, and we file the assignment with the court. No attorney needed on your end, though you are welcome to have one review it.
Step 4 — Receive your wire transfer within 3 to 5 business days. After the agreement is signed, we initiate the wire transfer. You receive your payment and you are done. We take over all enforcement activity from that point forward — skip tracing, bank levies, garnishments, property liens. The collection burden shifts entirely to us. You will never receive another call from the debtor, and you will never have to chase them again.
What We Look For in a Judgment
Not every judgment is equally collectible, and we price them accordingly. Understanding what drives our offer — and what creates challenges — helps you set realistic expectations before you submit. Here are the factors we weigh most heavily.
Debtor type. An employed individual or an actively operating business is the most collectible debtor type. Employment means wages can be garnished. An operating business has bank accounts, accounts receivable, and commercial assets. Dissolved entities with no remaining assets, on the other hand, present the hardest collection challenge — there is simply nothing to levy against. If you are uncertain whether the debtor is still operating, submit anyway — we will research it.
Judgment age. Newer judgments are generally stronger. California judgments are enforceable for 10 years from the date of entry and can be renewed for another 10. We buy judgments up to 9 years old, provided they have not been discharged in bankruptcy and the debtor can still be located. A judgment entered last year and a judgment entered seven years ago may both be worth purchasing — age is one factor among many, not an automatic disqualifier.
Prior collection attempts. Tell us what you have already tried. If you have run a debtor examination, attempted a bank levy, or hired a collection agency, share that history. It does not disqualify your judgment — in fact, it helps us understand what we are working with. A judgment holder who has already located the debtor’s bank account and attempted a levy gives us a significant head start.
Face value and accrued interest. Our minimum is $10,000. Larger judgments attract stronger offers because the economics of enforcement justify more aggressive collection activity. Remember that California judgments accrue interest at 10% per year from the date of entry, so a $30,000 judgment from four years ago has grown to roughly $42,000 in total enforced value. We factor accrued interest into our evaluation.
Finality and bankruptcy status. The judgment must be final with no pending appeals. If the debtor has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and the debt was discharged, the judgment is extinguished and we cannot purchase it. However, a Chapter 13 filing — where the debtor is on a repayment plan — does not necessarily disqualify the judgment. Similarly, certain debts are non-dischargeable under federal bankruptcy law even in Chapter 7 cases. If there has been any bankruptcy activity, disclose it in your submission and we will evaluate it.
Who Sells Judgments to SAC Judgment Collection
Most of our clients are ordinary people and business owners who did everything right. They had a contract, the other party breached it. They hired an attorney, they litigated, they won a judgment. And then they discovered that winning in court and actually getting paid are two very different things. Selling the judgment lets them close the chapter and move on.
Small business owners. Contractors, staffing agencies, distributors, and service providers who won a business dispute but cannot afford to spend the next two years chasing the debtor through court-ordered collection. Many small business owners are willing to take a discounted cash payment today rather than an uncertain full recovery over an indefinite timeline. Time has real value, especially when you are running a business that needs your attention.
Commercial landlords. Landlords with judgments against former commercial tenants — for unpaid rent, property damage, or lease termination penalties — are frequent sellers. Commercial lease disputes often produce large judgments against entities that have dissolved or relocated, making enforcement difficult without dedicated investigation. We handle that investigation as part of our enforcement process.
Attorneys and law firms. Some attorneys obtain judgments for clients who, after years of litigation, simply want the money now rather than waiting for an uncertain collection outcome. We work directly with attorneys and their clients to structure a purchase that closes the file. If you are an attorney with clients who have uncollected judgments, we are happy to discuss an ongoing referral relationship.
Individuals from business disputes. Not every judgment holder is a large company. Individual plaintiffs who won a contract dispute, a fraud case, or a business tort against a company or former business partner often find themselves holding a judgment with no realistic way to enforce it. If the defendant was a company that has since shut down, or an individual who has moved and hidden assets, the judgment can feel worthless. Selling it turns an uncertain paper asset into real money.
California Judgment Enforcement — Why It Is Hard
California has some of the strongest debtor protection laws in the United States. This is not an accident — the state legislature has spent decades expanding exemptions that shield debtors from creditors. Understanding these protections explains why so many judgment holders eventually conclude that selling makes more financial sense than years of collection effort.
The homestead exemption is perhaps the most significant barrier. California debtors can protect between $300,000 and $678,391 in home equity from judgment liens, depending on the county and applicable automatic homestead. In high-cost markets like San Francisco or Los Angeles, this exemption effectively shields most homeowners entirely. Retirement accounts — 401(k)s, IRAs, pensions — are broadly protected as well, as are tools of the trade up to a statutory limit. A debtor who knows the law can structure their assets to be largely judgment-proof.
Wage garnishments are limited to 25% of disposable earnings under California law — and only after the debtor’s other exemptions are applied. Bank levies are theoretically straightforward but require knowing exactly which bank and which account the debtor uses. Debtors can and do move accounts once they know a judgment creditor is active. Each new levy attempt requires a new writ, a new bank deposit, and another round of service. If the debtor moves, skip tracing becomes necessary to locate new employment and new accounts.
Every enforcement action requires proper service of legal documents, court filing fees, and time spent preparing and tracking the paperwork. A single bank levy in Sacramento Superior Court requires a writ of execution, service on the bank via the levying officer, a memorandum of garnishee, and follow-up if the levy is returned unsatisfied. Multiply this across multiple attempts over multiple years, and the cost of enforcement can easily exceed what many creditors recover — especially on judgments under $50,000.
Our team handles all of this. We have established enforcement workflows across all 58 California counties. We maintain relationships with registered process servers, levying officers, and skip tracing services. We know how to locate hidden assets, identify active bank accounts, and execute enforcement actions efficiently. When you sell to us, the entire enforcement burden shifts to us. You receive your payment and walk away.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you buy judgments against individuals as well as businesses?
We focus on commercial judgments — business-to-business disputes, commercial leases, contractor disputes, and commercial loans. We occasionally evaluate judgments against high-net-worth individuals in commercial contexts, such as a personal guarantor on a commercial debt. Personal injury judgments, family law matters, and consumer debt judgments are outside our scope.
What if the debtor is making payments on the judgment?
A judgment with an active payment history is actually more attractive to us — it demonstrates that the debtor acknowledges the debt and has some capacity to pay. If your debtor is making partial payments, include that information in your submission, along with the payment history and the current outstanding balance. We will factor the payment stream into our offer.
Can I sell part of my judgment and keep the rest?
In most cases, no. We purchase the full judgment. Partial assignments create complex legal issues around priority and enforcement — particularly when there are multiple creditors or when enforcement actions generate partial recoveries. A full assignment is cleaner, faster, and more defensible legally. In unusual circumstances involving very large judgments, we may be open to discussing alternatives, but this is not our standard approach.
How do you handle post-judgment interest?
California judgments accrue interest at 10% per year from the date of entry under California Code of Civil Procedure section 685.010. We include all accrued interest in our evaluation of the judgment’s face value. A $50,000 judgment entered three years ago has accrued approximately $15,000 in interest, bringing the total enforced value to roughly $65,000. We calculate this precisely as part of our review and apply it to our offer.
Is this confidential?
Yes. We do not disclose client names, judgment details, or transaction terms to any third party. The assignment of judgment is a matter of public court record once it is filed — that is required by law — but the terms of our purchase agreement, including the price we paid, are entirely private. We do not publish case information, client names, or transaction terms in any marketing materials.
Get a free evaluation
Any California county. One business day response. No cost, no obligation.