Art. 2451.Examination of Judgment Debtor and Third Parties; Depositions

A money judgment is only as useful as the creditor's ability to find assets to satisfy it. Article 2451 supplies the tool for that hunt. It lets a judgment creditor, once a judgment is in hand, examine the judgment debtor under oath about his property -- what he owns, where it is, and what it is worth -- along with his books, papers, and other documents bearing on that property.

The creditor has a choice of procedural paths. Paragraph A allows the examination to proceed either under Louisiana's general discovery articles, 1421 through 1515, the same tools used to gather evidence before trial, or under the dedicated examination procedure that follows in Articles 2452 through 2456. The second track is built for post-judgment asset discovery and moves on a faster, more summary schedule than ordinary discovery.

Paragraph B extends the tool to third parties. A judgment creditor may also examine any person, not just the debtor, about matters relating to the debtor's property -- useful when someone else might be holding money or property belonging to the debtor, or might know where it is. That third-party examination proceeds only under the general discovery articles referenced in Paragraph A; the streamlined 2452-through-2456 procedure applies to the debtor's own examination, not a third party's.

It helps to keep this examination distinct from garnishment. Garnishment reaches a third party who already owes the debtor money or holds the debtor's property, and orders that party to pay or turn it over. The examination under Article 2451 works a step earlier: it asks questions to find out what property exists and who has it, before the creditor knows whether garnishment, seizure, or some other execution tool is worth using.