For Florida Counsel
Enforcing a Florida Judgment in New York
A guide for Florida attorneys moving a Florida money judgment into New York enforcement under CPLR Article 54
Your Florida judgment can generally be domesticated in New York under CPLR Article 54, using the exemplified copy of the judgment you already hold. If the judgment was taken by default in appearance or by confession, that streamlined route is closed, and enforcement instead proceeds by plenary action or a CPLR § 3213 motion for summary judgment in lieu of complaint. The exemplified copy you are holding has a 90-day shelf life from the date of authentication, so the filing clock is already running before you pick up the phone.
I am a New York judgment enforcement attorney who regularly works with out-of-state counsel, including Florida attorneys whose clients have a debtor with New York assets, income, or business activity. What follows is a practical walkthrough of what domestication requires, what to check about your judgment's lien status in Florida before relying on it here, and where New York law reaches further than Florida law does.
The Threshold Question: Was the Judgment Entered by Default?
Before anything else, CPLR § 5402(a) requires the judgment creditor's filing affidavit to state, among other things, that the judgment was not obtained by default in appearance or by confession of judgment. That single sworn statement is the fork in the road. CPLR § 5401 excludes default and confession judgments from the definition of a foreign judgment eligible for Article 54's streamlined filing procedure in the first place, so if the affidavit cannot be made truthfully, the summary route is closed before it starts.
That does not mean the judgment is unenforceable in New York. CPLR § 5406 expressly preserves the creditor's right to bring an action to enforce the judgment instead of proceeding under Article 54. In practice that means a plenary action on the judgment, or a CPLR § 3213 motion for summary judgment in lieu of complaint, which treats the judgment as an instrument for the payment of money only. The tradeoff is real: the 3213 route requires personal service on the debtor rather than mailed notice, moves on ordinary litigation timelines rather than a summary filing, and opens a door for the debtor to appear and contest the matter. Knowing which fork you are on before you file anything saves real time.
Mechanics and Deadlines Once You Have a Non-Default Judgment
Assuming the affidavit can be made, CPLR § 5402(a) sets a hard clock: the exemplified copy of the Florida judgment may be filed with any New York county clerk within 90 days of the date of authentication. Once filed, CPLR § 5403 requires notice of the filing to be mailed to the debtor within 30 days, and execution proceeds cannot be distributed to you any earlier than 30 days after proof of that service is filed with the clerk. Once filed, the judgment has the same effect and is subject to the same procedures and defenses as a judgment originally entered in New York Supreme Court.
- Which county. File in the county where the debtor's assets actually sit, not necessarily where you expect the debtor to be served with notice. Docketing is what creates the real property lien, and that lien only reaches real property in the county of filing, so the choice of county is a strategic decision, not an administrative formality.
- What the clerk wants. New York county clerks generally expect the exemplified copy, the CPLR § 5402(a) affidavit, and the filing fee. An exemplified copy is not simply a certified copy from the Florida court. It typically carries a chain of certifications, first from the Florida clerk attesting to the judgment, then from the presiding or chief judge attesting that the clerk's certification is in proper form, satisfying 28 U.S.C. § 1738. Florida clerks are used to producing these on request, but the request should specify what is needed, since a plain certified copy alone is often rejected.
Is Your Judgment Still Alive in Florida? A Different Question Than Dormancy
Florida judgments run 20 years under § 95.11(1) of the Florida Statutes, and that alone might suggest there is nothing urgent to check. But the judgment's own life is not what matters most for a New York enforcement strategy so much as whether you can still show a perfected lien, and in Florida the liens do not run on the same clock as the judgment. A real property lien requires a certified copy recorded in the county's official records under § 55.10, good for an initial 10 years and renewable once for another 10, a 20-year maximum. A personal property lien requires a judgment lien certificate filed with the Florida Department of State, effective for 5 years and renewable once for another 5, a 10-year maximum, not 20. Confusing those two numbers can badly misjudge how much runway is left.
A Florida creditor whose judgment lien certificate lapsed in year six has a live, fully enforceable judgment and no perfected lien on the debtor's personal property. The judgment itself is fine. The lien is gone, and many creditors do not realize the certificate lapsed until they try to use it. Before pursuing New York enforcement, confirm which liens are still perfected in Florida, not just whether the underlying judgment is still within its 20-year life.
The Issue Almost Nobody Raises: New York's Borrowing Statute
If a Florida lien has already lapsed and you are relying on the underlying judgment rather than a perfected lien, one more question deserves attention before treating a plenary action as a simple fallback to Article 54. CPLR § 202, New York's borrowing statute, bars a non-resident's claim if it would be untimely under either New York's limitations period or the limitations period of the state where the claim accrued, whichever is shorter. New York's own presumption that a money judgment is satisfied after 20 years, under CPLR § 211(b), is generally understood to govern actions to enforce a judgment as such. But whether a New York court would treat a CPLR § 5406 plenary action on a Florida judgment as borrowing some aspect of Florida's own judgment-enforcement or lien-renewal scheme, rather than simply applying New York's 20-year period, is not settled by any published New York appellate decision. This is exactly the kind of question that can complicate a matter after time and filing fees are already spent, and it is worth raising with New York counsel before deciding which route to take on an older judgment or a lapsed lien.
Why New York May Reach What Florida Can't
Florida's exemption structure is, if anything, more protective than most states for exactly the assets that matter most to a creditor. The homestead exemption is unlimited in value under article X, § 4 of the Florida Constitution, capped only at 160 acres outside a municipality or half an acre within one. The head-of-family wage exemption under § 222.11 makes disposable earnings of $750 per week or less fully exempt regardless of head-of-family status, and earnings above that threshold are not garnishable at all for a head of family absent a written agreement. And property held by spouses as tenants by the entireties, real property or a bank account, is generally shielded entirely from a creditor of only one spouse, a rule the Florida Supreme Court reaffirmed and arguably strengthened as recently as December 2025 in Loumpos v. Bank One.
New York's version of tenancy by the entireties is materially different, and it is a genuinely underappreciated point of leverage. New York recognizes tenancy by the entirety for real property held by married couples, but unlike Florida, it does not treat that form of ownership as placing a debtor spouse's interest entirely beyond a creditor's reach. New York courts have long held, most recently the Second Department in 2021, that a judgment creditor of one spouse can obtain a lien on and force a sheriff's sale of that spouse's interest alone. The purchaser becomes a tenant in common with the other spouse, cannot occupy or force partition of the property, and loses everything if the debtor spouse dies first, but the interest is reachable in a way Florida law simply does not permit. Bank accounts held jointly by New York spouses are, if anything, more exposed still. New York has no entireties-style protection for deposit accounts, and a joint account is generally presumed fully accessible to a judgment creditor of either named holder, absent proof the account was opened for convenience only.
New York's homestead exemption is also capped in dollars rather than unlimited. CPLR § 5206 sets the codified figure at $150,000 for Kings, Queens, New York, Bronx, Richmond, Nassau, Suffolk, Rockland, Westchester, and Putnam counties, with lower tiers elsewhere, but that codified number is not the operative one today. CPLR § 5253 requires a triennial cost-of-living adjustment, and the figure most recently adjusted effective April 1, 2024 puts the downstate exemption at $204,825, with the next adjustment due April 1, 2027. I flag that discrepancy on purpose. The statute you can read and the number that actually applies are different, and equity above that adjusted figure is exposed to a docketed judgment lien in a way a Florida homestead never is.
One Thing Worth Saying Directly: Florida Creditors' Counsel Already Know How to Fight
Florida's proceedings supplementary mechanism, codified at § 56.29, is one of the more powerful creditor remedies in the country. It lets a judgment creditor implead transferees directly into the existing collection case by motion, without a new lawsuit, shifts the burden to a transferee who received the debtor's property within a year of service to justify the transfer, and allows the court to enter a money judgment directly against a transferee even if that transferee no longer holds the property. Attorneys who use § 56.29 regularly are not newcomers to aggressive collection work. New York's mechanics are different in structure: restraining notices, information subpoenas, and separate turnover proceedings under CPLR §§ 5225 and 5227 rather than a single consolidated supplementary proceeding, but the underlying skill set, tracing assets, unwinding transfers, and pursuing transferees, translates directly. The adjustment is procedural, not conceptual.
What Enforcement Actually Looks Like Here
Once the judgment is recognized in New York, the tools are the same ones available in any New York enforcement matter. Restraining notices under CPLR § 5222 freeze accounts and receivables without a court order. Information subpoenas under CPLR § 5224 compel the debtor and third parties to disclose the debtor's financial footprint. Turnover proceedings under CPLR §§ 5225 and 5227 compel the debtor, or a third party who owes the debtor money, to hand it over. Income executions reach wages, subject to New York's own exemption limits. Receivership is available in appropriate cases where ongoing management of an asset or business interest is needed to realize its value.
One honest limit is worth stating rather than glossing over. New York's separate entity rule, reaffirmed by the Court of Appeals in Motorola Credit Corp. v. Standard Chartered Bank, means a restraining notice served on one branch of a bank does not automatically restrain funds held at that bank's other branches. If the debtor banks at multiple branches or institutions, that has to be accounted for in how the restraints are structured, not discovered afterward.
Before You Call Me
Whether or not you retain New York counsel, these four questions are worth answering first:
- Is the judgment, and any lien you are relying on, still enforceable in Florida: has the real property lien or judgment lien certificate been renewed within its window?
- Was the judgment entered by default or confession, or was it contested?
- Do you have an exemplified copy of the judgment, and when was it authenticated?
- What New York assets have you identified: real property, bank accounts, income, or business interests?
That last question drives the strategy more than any other. If you have not yet identified New York assets, that is a reasonable place to start the conversation rather than a reason to wait.
Working With Florida Counsel
I respond to inquiries from out-of-state attorneys within 24 hours, excluding weekends and holidays, and an initial review of the judgment and the debtor's New York connections can usually tell you quickly whether domestication is the right move. Fee arrangements with referring or co-counsel attorneys are structured consistent with New York Rule of Professional Conduct 1.5(g), which permits a division of fees between lawyers not in the same firm either in proportion to the work each performs, or by written agreement in which each lawyer assumes joint responsibility for the representation, the client consents in writing to the arrangement and the share each lawyer will receive, and the total fee is reasonable. I am admitted to practice in New York and before the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York, and I welcome direct contact from Florida attorneys and their clients to discuss a specific judgment. If the Florida judgment was not entered by default, the domestication filing itself may qualify for a $1,000 flat fee, filing fees included.
Frequently Asked Questions About Enforcing a Florida Judgment in New York
Can a Florida judgment be enforced in New York?
Yes. A Florida money judgment can be domesticated in New York under CPLR Article 54 using an exemplified copy, then enforced with the same tools available for any New York judgment, provided the Florida judgment was not entered by default and remains valid and enforceable in Florida.
What if the Florida judgment was entered by default?
Article 54's streamlined filing procedure is not available for default or confession judgments. The judgment can still be enforced in New York through a plenary action or a CPLR 3213 motion for summary judgment in lieu of complaint, which takes longer and requires personal service on the debtor.
How long do I have to file the exemplified copy in New York?
CPLR 5402(a) allows filing within 90 days of the date the judgment was authenticated. After that window closes, a new exemplified copy generally needs to be obtained before filing.
My Florida judgment lien certificate lapsed years ago. Is the judgment dead?
No. A Florida money judgment is enforceable for 20 years regardless of lien status. A lapsed judgment lien certificate only means the personal property lien is no longer perfected, since certificates run 5 years with one 5-year renewal. Confirm the current lien status before assuming either way.
Why would a debtor who is judgment-proof in Florida be reachable in New York?
Florida's homestead, wage, and tenancy by the entireties protections are broader than New York's. New York's homestead exemption is capped in dollars, currently around $204,825 downstate, and New York allows a creditor to reach a debtor spouse's entireties interest in a way Florida law does not permit.
Do I need to be a New York attorney to refer this matter?
No. I regularly work with out-of-state attorneys on a co-counsel or referral basis, with fee arrangements structured under New York Rule of Professional Conduct 1.5(g). You can stay involved in the matter or hand it off entirely, depending on what your client needs.
What is the separate entity rule and why does it matter?
New York courts have held that a restraining notice served on one bank branch does not automatically freeze funds at that bank's other branches. If the debtor banks at multiple locations, the restraints have to be structured accordingly rather than assumed to reach everything at once.
What should I do before calling about a Florida judgment?
Confirm the judgment was not entered by default, check whether your real property lien or judgment lien certificate is still within its renewal window, locate your exemplified copy and its authentication date, and identify any New York assets you already know about.