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<p class="MsoNormal">Yes, client is owner, but no homestead issue on this property.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I wondered if the title company was conflating judgment and order; maybe that’s it. I wouldn’t use the word “judgment” for an order, even if the order requires payment to another party. Judgments are instruments of finality and have to
comply with CR 54 and judgment indexing requirements.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Any order to pay would not be a lien on property until it met all those requirements, so I can see why a title company wouldn’t particularly care about that.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Good reminder regarding homestead – it’s easy to rely too routinely on judgments becoming automatic liens on real property in the same county. It still makes sense to record a judgment, even in the same county it’s issued, if the debtor
has real property that might be subject to homestead exemption.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Sincerely,<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Eric<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Eric C. Nelsen<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Sayre Law Offices, PLLC<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">1417 31st Ave South<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Seattle WA 98144-3909<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">206-625-0092<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="mailto:eric@sayrelawoffices.com"><span style="color:#467886">eric@sayrelawoffices.com</span></a><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">From:</span></b><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif"> wsbarp-bounces@lists.wsbarppt.com <wsbarp-bounces@lists.wsbarppt.com>
<b>On Behalf Of </b>Dwight Bickel<br>
<b>Sent:</b> Wednesday, October 14, 2026 1:06 PM<br>
<b>To:</b> WSBA Real Property Listserv <wsbarp@lists.wsbarppt.com><br>
<b>Subject:</b> Re: [WSBARP] Title commitment and criminal judgment liens<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black">Actually, such judgments are often Orders, with no Judgment Summary, and in any event those are indexed differently. In my experience, title companies are not consistently searching for such Orders imposing criminal
restitution. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black">Is your client the owner, so the commitment is for a sale? If so, is your client living on the property? If so, the property is homestead and any Judgment is not legally a lien upon the property without recording.
If your client is not the owner, and is selling, the Commitment for a purchaser should show that exception and require its payment, or a release of the lien.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black">If your client is purchasing, the title company often simply doesn't do any judgment search, knowing (1) a policy issued to the new lender does not require exception for judgments against the borrower, because
any judgment lien does not attach prior to the new purchase-money deed of trust, (2) a policy issued to the judgment debtor does not protect against the Insured's own debt, and (3) if the property is occupied it is not a lien unless recorded. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="elementtoproof" style="background:white"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif;color:#174E86">Dwight A. Bickel </span><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="elementtoproof" style="background:white"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif;color:#174E86">Real Property Title Advisor </span><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="elementtoproof" style="background:white"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif;color:#174E86">Washington Title Professional </span><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="elementtoproof" style="background:white"><span style="color:black"><a href="mailto:Dwight@dwightbickel.com" id="OWAc396a7f8-4075-aeed-8a7f-5682526e2b4a"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif;color:#174E86">Dwight@dwightbickel.com</span></a></span><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif;color:#174E86"> </span><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="elementtoproof" style="background:white"><span style="color:black"><a href="http://dwightbickel.com" id="OWA4053a971-4515-8561-19b1-a4174906bc44"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif;color:#174E86">http://dwightbickel.com</span></a></span><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif;color:#174E86"> </span><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="elementtoproof" style="background:white"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Verdana",sans-serif;color:#174E86">206-484-1976 </span><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black">From:</span></b><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black">
</span><a href="mailto:wsbarp-bounces@lists.wsbarppt.com"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">wsbarp-bounces@lists.wsbarppt.com</span></a><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black"> <</span><a href="mailto:wsbarp-bounces@lists.wsbarppt.com"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">wsbarp-bounces@lists.wsbarppt.com</span></a><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black">>
on behalf of Eric Nelsen <</span><a href="mailto:eric@sayrelawoffices.com"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">eric@sayrelawoffices.com</span></a><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black">><br>
<b>Sent:</b> Wednesday, October 14, 2026 11:46 AM<br>
<b>To:</b> WSBA Real Property Listserv (</span><a href="mailto:wsbarp@lists.wsbarppt.com"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">wsbarp@lists.wsbarppt.com</span></a><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black">) <</span><a href="mailto:wsbarp@lists.wsbarppt.com"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">wsbarp@lists.wsbarppt.com</span></a><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black">><br>
<b>Subject:</b> [WSBARP] Title commitment and criminal judgment liens <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p>I have a client who ordered a preliminary title commitment that doesn’t show any judgment liens. But the client does have a criminal restitution judgment that is in the process of being paid off. The title company apparently told the client that “certain
criminal judgment liens do not appear in a standard title search.”<o:p></o:p></p>
<p> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p>Huh? Any idea what that would mean? Judgments are judgments, indexed and discoverable in the same way regardless of whether they’re civil or criminal—so far as I know, anyway. Can anybody enlighten me?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p>Sincerely,<o:p></o:p></p>
<p> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p>Eric<o:p></o:p></p>
<p> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p>Eric C. Nelsen<o:p></o:p></p>
<p>Sayre Law Offices, PLLC<o:p></o:p></p>
<p>1417 31st Ave South<o:p></o:p></p>
<p>Seattle WA 98144-3909<o:p></o:p></p>
<p>206-625-0092<o:p></o:p></p>
<p><a href="mailto:eric@sayrelawoffices.com" id="OWAac3edf8f-a54c-f1d3-abb3-91d2ca7aa0ba">eric@sayrelawoffices.com</a><o:p></o:p></p>
<p> <o:p></o:p></p>
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