Enforcement of a Court Order Within Scotland: What Are My Options?
Published bySusan Currie
Following the UK’s Autumn budget, many companies and individuals across Scotland will be reassessing their finances and circumstances. If you currently hold a court judgement (known as an order, decision or decree) against someone who owes you money, it may be the time to start considering how you will recover the sums due.
Enforcing court orders is known as carrying out diligence. Diligence against individuals and companies can take a range of formats. Each case needs to be assessed on the circumstances; however, the main types of diligence are summarised below.
Charge for Payment
On most occasions, a charge for payment is the starting point for diligence. Served by Sheriff Officers, a charge for payment is a written demand that seeks payment or security for the debt within 14 days of the date of service. If the sums due remain outstanding after this period, and there has been no dispute, you can progress with other types of diligence, which can include having them declared insolvent (namely, sequestrating an individual or liquidating a company).
Attachment Orders
If the debtor owns moveable property (i.e. not buildings), an attachment order can be used to attach the property of the debtor. If payment of the sums sought, or another agreement is not reached, the goods can be uplifted and sold at a later date. There are significant restrictions on what can and can’t be attached, but in general attachments orders can be used for expensive vehicles. If you’re pursuing an individual for payment, you can also ask the court in some circumstances to grant an “exceptional attachment order”, which gives the Sheriff Officers permission to enter their home to remove moveable property to sell it.
Bank Arrestment
A bank arrestment is served on the bank of the debtor ordering them to freeze money within any accounts belonging to the debtor up to the value of the debt. The funds frozen by the bank are held for 14 weeks before being released, although the debtor can agree to release the funds early. If the debtor is an individual, in order for the bank arrestment to be successful, the debtor needs to have more than the ‘protected minimum balance’ in their account. Only sums over the protected minimum balance, which currently sits at £1,000, will be caught by the arrestment. The schedule of arrestment is served on a specific bank, however if you don’t know the bank the debtor is with, speculative arrestments can be served.
Earnings Arrestment
If the debtor is an individual and is in employment, an earnings arrestment can be served on their employer permitting deductions directly from their pay. The amount deducted from each pay is fixed by statute and depends upon the net earnings and payment routine. The employer has to deduct the debt before passing it to their employee, and if they fail to do so the employer can be held liable to make payment of the deductions themselves. Conjoined arrestment orders can be made if there is more than one creditor who has served an earnings arrestment.
Inhibition
If the debtor owns heritable property, an inhibition can be placed on the property, preventing the debtor from selling the property or even re-mortgaging it. Whilst an inhibition is a preventative diligence i.e. won’t bring funds in straight away, the inhibition stops the debtor from selling and remortgaging without getting a discharge from the creditor, which of course would only be granted in exchange for payment from the sale or re-mortgage proceeds. This can be very useful in bringing the debtor to the table to enter into repayment discussions. An inhibition generally lasts 5 years, but can be renewed.
Summary
The diligence methods outlined above are only some of the options available in pursuing satisfaction of a court order. Each method is much more detailed that the summary contained within this blog and consideration needs to be given to the specific circumstances before deciding how to progress.
Please contact our Wright, Johnston & Mackenzie debt recovery and conflict resolution specialists for any assistance.
The information contained in this newsletter is for general guidance only and represents our understanding of relevant law and practice as at December 2025. Wright, Johnston & Mackenzie LLP cannot be held responsible for any action taken or not taken in reliance upon the contents. Specific advice should be taken on any individual matter. Transmissions to or from our email system and calls to or from our offices may be monitored and/or recorded for regulatory purposes. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered office: 319 St Vincent Street, Glasgow, G2 5RZ. A limited liability partnership registered in Scotland, number SO 300336.
