Marketing to wage garnishment and lawsuit clients, and trigger-event marketing generally, targets the moment a debt problem turns into a concrete legal event: a garnishment order, a collection lawsuit, a frozen bank account, a repossession. Those are the moments people stop putting off the call. Filing bankruptcy generally stops garnishments and collection actions through the automatic stay, so a bankruptcy firm that shows up at that moment, with the right message, gets the consultation.
Trigger events are also where generic “bankruptcy lawyer” campaigns fall short. The person isn't searching for bankruptcy yet. They're searching for the thing that just happened to them.
- Build one ad group and one landing page per trigger: garnishment, lawsuit, bank levy, repossession.
- The search terms are about the event (“how to stop wage garnishment”), not the remedy.
- These ads are covered by 11 U.S.C. § 528 even when they don't say “bankruptcy.”
- Not every trigger-event caller needs bankruptcy. Have an honest answer, and a referral, for the ones who don't.
The Four Trigger Events That Drive Bankruptcy Calls
Each trigger has its own search language, its own urgency and its own honest answer about what bankruptcy can do. Lumping them together wastes the best signal you have.
| Trigger | What they search | What bankruptcy generally does | Urgency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wage garnishment | “how to stop wage garnishment,” “garnishment lawyer near me” | Stay stops future garnishment; some recent garnished wages may be recoverable | High: every paycheck |
| Collection lawsuit | “sued by credit card company,” “served papers for debt” | Stay halts the suit; dischargeable debt can be discharged | Answer deadline |
| Bank levy | “bank account frozen by creditor,” “bank levy help” | Depends on timing and exemptions; ask fast | Very high |
| Repossession | “car repossessed what now,” “stop repossession” | Stay stops a pending repo; getting a car back may take a Chapter 13 and a motion | High: sale notice |
Notice the hedging in the third column. Recovery of garnished wages, avoidance of judgment liens and getting a repossessed car back all depend on timing, exemptions and the court. The Supreme Court held in City of Chicago v. Fulton (2021) that a creditor merely keeping property seized before filing doesn't violate the stay, so turnover often requires going to the court. Your ads should promise a conversation, not an outcome.
Wage Garnishment Lawyer Marketing That Brings Calls
Garnishment is the strongest trigger in consumer bankruptcy because it repeats. The first short paycheck is a shock; the second one is a decision. Wage garnishment lawyer marketing works best when it matches that rhythm.
Ad copy that matches the moment
- “Wages Being Garnished? Bankruptcy Can Stop It” (pair with the § 528 statement).
- “Garnishment Started This Week? Call Before the Next Payday.”
- “Talk to a Bankruptcy Lawyer About Your Garnishment Today.”
Avoid “get your money back” as a headline. It's sometimes possible and often not, and leading with it sets up a disappointed client and a possible misleading-advertising problem.
Keywords and negatives
Good: “stop wage garnishment,” “wage garnishment lawyer,” “bankruptcy stop garnishment,” “garnishment help.” Negatives: “garnishment calculator,” “garnishment laws,” “child support” (support garnishments generally continue despite the stay), “student loan” (if you don't want those cases), “form,” “employer,” “payroll.” Employers and HR staff search garnishment terms constantly. Our bankruptcy Google Ads keywords guide has the longer negative list.
Collection Lawsuits: The Debt Buyer Keywords
People who get sued often search the plaintiff's name: the original creditor or a debt buyer. “Sued by [debt buyer name]” searches are specific, local in effect, and lower cost than generic bankruptcy terms in many markets. Google generally lets you use another company's name as a keyword, but restricts trademarks in ad text if the owner complains, so keep the company name in the keyword and out of the headline.
Be honest about fit. Someone sued over one moderate debt may be better served by answering the suit or negotiating than by filing. If you don't do collection defense, have a referral. A firm that tells a caller “you probably don't need bankruptcy for this” earns the case two years later and, often, a review.
Lawsuit and judgment records are often public, and some firms mail defendants in collection suits. State rules on targeted written communications vary (labels, filing requirements, timing), and the § 528 disclosure applies to the letter. Check both before mailing.
Building a Trigger-Event Campaign
Split by trigger
One campaign or ad group each for garnishment, lawsuit, levy and repossession, with separate budgets so the strongest trigger isn't starved.
Write one landing page per trigger
Headline names the event. The body explains what usually happens next, what bankruptcy can do, and what to bring (the garnishment order, the summons, the levy notice).
Add the disclosure
Section 528(b) covers ads about debt collection pressure and inability to pay consumer debt. Include “We are a debt relief agency. We help people file for bankruptcy relief under the Bankruptcy Code” or a substantially similar statement.
Ask trigger-specific intake questions
When did garnishment start, and how much per check? When were you served? Is there a sale date for the car?
Track by trigger
Measure cost per filed case for each trigger separately. In many firms one trigger carries the campaign and another barely breaks even.
The landing page layout is covered in our bankruptcy landing pages guide; the disclosure details are in the debt relief agency advertising rules page. If you'd rather not build this yourself, our landing page service builds one page per trigger.
Is your garnishment traffic going to a generic bankruptcy page?
We'll map your trigger-event searches to landing pages and show you which triggers are actually producing filed cases. Free audit, no long-term contract.
Pay-Per-Lead for Trigger Events
If you don't want to run campaigns yourself, trigger-event leads can be bought. APM's bankruptcy pay-per-lead pricing runs $150–$250 per lead. Whatever you buy from anyone, ask what trigger the lead came from, whether it's exclusive, and how fast it reaches your phone. A garnishment lead that sits in an inbox for a day is a different product from one transferred live.
And track the trigger through to the filed case either way. That's how you know what your legal marketing ROI actually is, instead of guessing from lead counts.
Frequently Asked Questions
They build ads and landing pages around the garnishment itself, using searches like “how to stop wage garnishment” and “garnishment lawyer near me,” and explain that filing generally stops future garnishment through the automatic stay. Good campaigns add negatives for employer, payroll and calculator searches, include the § 528 disclosure, and answer the phone around paydays.
Generally, yes. The automatic stay under 11 U.S.C. § 362 stops most creditors from continuing a garnishment once the petition is filed. Domestic support garnishments are a major exception. In some cases wages garnished shortly before filing can be recovered, depending on amounts, timing and exemptions, so ads shouldn't promise refunds.
Google generally allows other companies' names as keywords, but restricts trademarked terms in ad text when the trademark owner complains. Many firms target “sued by” plus creditor or debt buyer names as keywords while keeping those names out of headlines. Make sure the ad doesn't imply any affiliation with the company.
Generally yes. Section 528(b) covers ads about debt collection pressure or inability to pay consumer debt, even if they don't mention bankruptcy. They must disclose that the help may involve bankruptcy relief and include “We are a debt relief agency. We help people file for bankruptcy relief under the Bankruptcy Code” or a substantially similar statement.