Judgment Lien Renewal in Florida

A judgment lien is a legal mechanism where a creditor secures their ability to collect against a given piece of property. With a Florida judgment lien, a creditor can encumber your property, including real estate, personal property, vehicles, and contractual rights, so that the judgment debtor cannot transfer away the asset without the creditor keeping its right to collect against the property.

Judgment liens in Florida are a key step in the collection process.

Steps to Renew a Judgment Lien

Judgment liens expire in 5 years for personal property and 10 years for real property. Renewing a judgment lien requires the creditor to (1) identify the current expiration date, (2) complete a judgment lien renewal statement, (3) pay the renewal filing fee, and (4) file the statement with the Florida Secretary of State.

Judgment liens must be renewed before the lien expires.

Renewing a judgment lien ensures that the creditor’s rights in the debtor’s property are maintained if the judgment is not paid.

A Judgment Lien Renewal Must Include Specific Information

Judgment lien renewals must follow the requirements established in Florida Statute 55.202.

A Judgment Lien Renewal Must Include

• The original judgment’s recording date
• Book and page number of the original recording
• The judgment debtor’s name
• Amount remaining unpaid

To renew a judgment lien on real property in Florida, the creditor must re-record the judgment in the county where the property is located.

How to Stop a Creditor from Renewing a Judgment Lien

You can stop a judgment creditor from renewing a judgment lien if the debt was paid or if the judgment creditor did not follow the right renewal procedures. If the original lien already expired before the lien was renewed, you can argue that the creditor did not renew the lien in time.

Whether or not the judgment lien is properly renewed, the judgment itself will remain enforceable during the lifetime of the judgment, which is 20 years.

Multiple Judgment Liens

If multiple creditors have judgment liens, then whoever filed their judgment lien first will have priority against other creditors who filed their judgment lien later. If a creditor files for a new judgment lien later, then the new judgment lien will be later in priority than other liens, even if the judgment was entered earlier.