Writ of Execution
A court order, issued by the clerk or justice of the peace once a money judgment is enforceable, directing a sheriff or constable to seize the judgment debtor's nonexempt property and sell it to pay the judgment. Texas governs it through Chapter 34 of the Civil Practice and Remedies Code and Rules 621 through 656.
A Texas writ of execution orders a sheriff or constable to seize and sell a judgment debtor's nonexempt property. The clerk issues it on request 30 days after the final judgment is signed (Tex. R. Civ. P. 627), and the judgment goes dormant if no writ issues within 10 years (CPRC § 34.001).
A judgment by itself collects nothing. Rule 621 says the judgments of district, county and justice courts are enforced "by execution or other appropriate process," and the writ of execution is the standard tool for a money judgment. The judgment creditor asks the clerk (or, in justice court, the justice of the peace) to issue it. The writ is addressed to any sheriff or constable in Texas, not to a particular county, and it tells the officer to satisfy the judgment and costs out of the debtor's property that is subject to execution.
The writ reaches only nonexempt property. A homestead, most retirement accounts and a capped list of personal property stay out of the officer's hands, so the practical value of a writ depends on what the debtor owns outside those exemptions.
- Governing law
- Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code ch. 34; (Tex. R. Civ. P. 621-656)
- Earliest issuance
- 30 days after the final judgment is signed, or sooner on an affidavit that the debtor is moving or hiding property (Tex. R. Civ. P. 627, 628)
- Return date
- 30, 60 or 90 days, as the creditor directs (Tex. R. Civ. P. 621, 629)
- Who levies
- Any sheriff or constable in Texas, on property in that officer's county (Tex. R. Civ. P. 622); (CPRC § 34.073)
- Dormancy
- 10 years without a writ; revival suit within 2 years after that CPRC §§ 31.006, 34.001
When the clerk may issue the writ
Under Rule 627, if no supersedeas bond has been filed and approved, the clerk issues execution on the creditor's application once 30 days have passed from the date the final judgment was signed. A timely motion for new trial moves the start date: the 30 days then run from the order overruling the motion, or from the date it is overruled by operation of law. Rule 628 allows an earlier writ if the creditor swears the debtor is about to remove personal property from the county or to transfer or hide it to defraud creditors.
A supersedeas bond filed and approved later, within the time allowed by law or the rules, still stops a writ already in motion. Rule 634 directs the clerk to issue a writ of supersedeas suspending all further proceedings under it. Justice court judgments are enforced the same way as county and district court judgments (Rule 505.2), and Rule 635 lets the justice grant a three-month stay if the debtor applies within ten days of the judgment, files a hardship affidavit and binds approved sureties for the full amount.
The levy
The officer endorses the hour and day the writ arrives (Rule 636) and then levies "without delay" on the debtor's nonexempt property in the county. Rule 637 gives the debtor the first say: the officer calls on the debtor to point out property, and levies on that property first unless it will not bring enough. The debtor may not point out property already sold, mortgaged or exempt (Rule 638).
Real estate is levied on by an endorsement on the writ, and the officer need not go onto the land. Personal property is levied on by taking possession, or by notice to the person in possession when the debtor holds only an interest (Rule 639). Section 34.071 is blunt about the officer's role: no duty to search for the debtor's property, to decide who owns it, or to decide whether it is exempt. Finding assets is the creditor's job, usually through post-judgment discovery under Rule 621a.
Execution sales
Real property taken in execution is sold at public auction between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. on the first Tuesday of the month, or the first Wednesday when that Tuesday is January 1 or July 4. The sale takes place at the courthouse door or at an area the commissioners court has designated, unless a court order or other law sets another place, and the commissioners court may authorize online bidding (Rule 646a; CPRC § 34.041). Notice runs once a week for three consecutive weeks in a county newspaper, the first publication at least 20 days before the sale, and the officer must give the debtor or the debtor's attorney written notice (Rule 647). Personal property needs ten days of posted notice (Rule 650).
The officer's deed conveys whatever right, title and interest the debtor had (§ 34.045), and any surplus beyond the executions goes back to the debtor (§ 34.047(c)). If the judgment is later reversed, the debtor recovers unsold property, or the market value at the time of sale of property already sold (§§ 34.021-.022).
Dormancy and revival
Section 34.001 sets a 10-year clock. A judgment of a court of record or a justice court goes dormant if no writ issues within 10 years after rendition, or if a writ issued but no second writ follows within 10 years of the first. Execution may not issue on a dormant judgment. The creditor can revive it by scire facias or an action of debt brought no later than the second anniversary of the date it went dormant (§ 31.006). Judgments for child support are outside Section 34.001, and judgments in favor of the state or a state agency do not go dormant at all (Tex. Prop. Code § 52.006(b)).
What the writ must state
Rules 629 and 630 set the contents of a writ issued on a money judgment.
- The style "The State of Texas," directed to any sheriff or any constable within the State of Texas.
- The clerk's or justice's official signature, and the court's seal if issued from a district or county court.
- A description of the judgment: the court, the date it was rendered, and the parties for and against whom it was rendered.
- The sum recovered, the sum actually due when the writ issues, and the rate of interest on the sum due.
- An attached copy of the bill of costs taxed against the debtor.
- A return date of 30, 60 or 90 days, as directed by the creditor or the creditor's attorney.
How long is a writ of execution good for in Texas?
The writ itself is returnable in 30, 60 or 90 days, whichever the creditor requests (Rules 621 and 629), and the officer may start a levy at any point during that period as long as there is time to finish the sale (CPRC § 34.072(b)). The judgment behind it lasts longer. It stays enforceable for 10 years after rendition, and if a writ issues in that window, the judgment goes dormant unless a second writ issues within 10 years after the first (§ 34.001).
How do you stop a writ of execution in Texas?
Paying the judgment ends it, and the law recognizes a few other events that halt it. A supersedeas bond filed and approved within the time allowed suspends further proceedings under the writ (Rule 634). A bankruptcy petition triggers the federal automatic stay, which covers enforcement of a prepetition judgment (11 U.S.C. § 362(a)(2)). For personal property already seized, Rule 644 lets the debtor recover it pending sale by posting a delivery bond. A Texas lawyer who handles judgment enforcement can say which, if any, fits the facts.
Can you go to jail for not paying a judgment in Texas?
Not for the debt. Article I, Section 18 of the Texas Constitution says "No person shall ever be imprisoned for debt." Court orders entered to collect a judgment are a separate matter. A turnover order under CPRC § 31.002 directs the debtor to hand over nonexempt property, and subsection (c) allows the court to enforce that order through contempt proceedings.
What happens after a writ of execution is issued in Texas?
The writ goes to a sheriff or constable, who notes the time of receipt and asks the debtor to point out nonexempt property to levy on (Rules 636-637). The officer then levies, gives the notice required for a sale, sells at public auction and files a written return with the court describing what was done (Rule 654). Money collected goes to the creditor at the earliest opportunity (CPRC § 34.047(a)).
For a business holding an unpaid judgment, the writ is only as good as the asset list behind it. Since the officer has no duty to search for property (CPRC § 34.071), creditors typically use post-judgment discovery under Rule 621a to locate bank accounts, equipment, receivables and real estate, then pair the writ with garnishment or a turnover order for assets an officer cannot simply seize. The personal property exemptions in Chapter 42 are written for families and single adults, so a judgment against a company generally meets fewer exemptions. For a judgment debtor, the 30 days after judgment are when the bond and post-judgment motion decisions get made.
- The dates that matter: the clerk may issue execution 30 days after the judgment is signed, or 30 days after a timely motion for new trial is overruled (Rule 627).
- A supersedeas bond filed and approved within the time allowed suspends proceedings under any writ already issued (Rule 634).
- When the officer calls, the debtor may point out nonexempt property to be levied on first, but not exempt, sold or mortgaged property (Rules 637-638).
- A real estate sale requires three weeks of newspaper notice and written notice to the debtor or the debtor's attorney (Rule 647), and personal property may be recovered pending sale by delivery bond (Rule 644).
- A Texas lawyer who handles judgment enforcement and debtor-creditor matters can review the judgment, the writ and any exemption claim.