Process to enforce a judgment for the payment of money shall be a writ of execution, unless the court directs otherwise. The procedure on execution in proceedings supplementary to and in aid of a judgment, and in proceedings on and in aid of execution shall be in accordance with applicable statute or rule. In aid of a judgment or execution, the judgment creditor, or his successor in interest when that interest appears of record, may obtain discovery from any person, including the judgment debtor in the manner provided in these rules.
Rule 69.Execution
Part VIII: Provisional and Final Remedies and Special Proceedings · Last amended 1966 · Last verified July 16, 2026
In one sentenceRule 15-6-69 makes a writ of execution the standard tool for enforcing a money judgment, points to statute or other rules for supplementary and in-aid-of-execution proceedings, and lets a judgment creditor use ordinary discovery, including against the judgment debtor, to track down assets.
Full Text of Rule 15-6-69
Plain-English Summary
Once a court enters judgment for a sum of money, the winning party still has to collect it. Rule 15-6-69 sets the default mechanism: a writ of execution, unless the court directs some other process instead. That default gives judgment creditors a known starting point without requiring a separate motion just to ask how to enforce what they already won.
The rule does not build out its own procedure for everything that can follow a judgment. Proceedings supplementary to and in aid of a judgment, and proceedings on and in aid of execution itself, run under whatever statute or other rule applies to them. Rule 15-6-69 hands off that detail rather than duplicating it.
What the rule does supply directly is a discovery tool. The judgment creditor, or a successor in interest once that interest appears of record, can obtain discovery from any person, including the judgment debtor, using the same discovery methods available earlier in the case. That lets a creditor search out bank accounts, property, or other assets the debtor might otherwise keep hidden from view.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I collect a money judgment in South Dakota?
Rule 15-6-69 makes a writ of execution the default process for enforcing a judgment for the payment of money, unless the court directs a different process instead.
Can a South Dakota court order a different collection method than a writ of execution?
Yes. Rule 15-6-69 states that a writ of execution applies unless the court directs otherwise, leaving room for the court to order a different enforcement process.
Can I get discovery from someone other than the judgment debtor to find assets?
Yes. Rule 15-6-69 allows the judgment creditor to obtain discovery from any person, not just the debtor, in aid of the judgment or execution.
If my judgment was assigned to someone else, can that person still use these collection tools?
Yes. Rule 15-6-69 extends these rights to the judgment creditor’s successor in interest, once that interest appears of record.
Where do I find the procedure for proceedings supplementary to a judgment?
Rule 15-6-69 does not set out that procedure itself. It states that proceedings supplementary to and in aid of a judgment, and proceedings on and in aid of execution, follow applicable statute or rule.
Amendment History
—SD RCP, Rule 69, as adopted by Sup. Ct. Order March 29, 1966, effective July 1, 1966; Supreme Court Rule 76-3, § 17.
Source & verification. Rule text and History are
reproduced verbatim from the South Dakota Codified Laws, published by the
South Dakota Legislative Research Council. Last verified July 16, 2026.
· Official source
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