Delaware judgment expiration is the question behind “how long is a judgment good for in Delaware”: a money judgment entered by a Delaware court is enforceable for a fixed number of years, it can be renewed if the creditor acts inside the window, and it earns interest the whole time.
This guide gives the Delaware figures in a dated table, explains what “dormant” means, how a creditor renews or revives a judgment, how the judgment becomes a lien on real property, what each side can do while it is alive, and how a paid judgment is cleared.
The Delaware judgment expiration figures on this page were verified against a dated 50-state compilation and Delaware sources as of October 2026; the statute named here is where to check them yourself.
Delaware Judgment Expiration at a Glance
| Enforceable for | 10 years from entry or recording (the real-estate lien term); executions within 5 years |
| Renewable | Yes |
| Renewal window | renew the lien before its 10 years run; executions within 5 years (later ones require the court process in the rules) |
| Post-judgment interest | on judgments on agreements: 5 percent over the Federal Reserve discount rate (including any surcharge) or the contract rate, WHICHEVER IS LESS, from the date of the judgment (6 Del. C. |
| Statute | 10 Del. C. 4711 (10-year lien; renewal); 10 Del. C. 5072 (5-year execution); 6 Del. C. 2301 (interest) |
In This Delaware Judgment Expiration Guide:
What a Money Judgment Is Before the Delaware Judgment Expiration Clock Starts
A money judgment is a court’s final order that one party owes another a set amount of money. In Delaware these are entered by the Justice of the Peace Court, the Court of Common Pleas and the Superior Court. The judgment is the court’s decision about the debt. A judgment lien is a separate claim against the debtor’s real estate.
In most cases the lien comes from a Superior Court judgment or one transferred there; a Justice of the Peace judgment alone is not a lien on land.
The Delaware Judgment Expiration Figures
The Delaware Judgment Expiration figures in the table above apply to this part as well.
| Rule | Bonus Bank Daily verified figure |
|---|---|
| Statute | 10 Del. C. 4711 (10-year lien; renewal); 10 Del. C. 5072 (5-year execution); 6 Del. C. 2301 (interest)compilation / agency — verified Oct 2026 |
| Enforceable for | 10 yearscompilation / agency — verified Oct 2026 |
| Clock runs from | entry or recording (the real-estate lien term); executions within 5 yearscompilation / agency — verified Oct 2026 |
| Renewable | Yescompilation / agency — verified Oct 2026 |
| How it is renewed or kept alive | the real-estate lien lasts 10 years from entry or recording unless, within those 10 years, it is renewed by a written agreement signed by the creditor and the debtor (and terre-tenants to bind later-conveyed land), or by the alternative court process the section goes on to set out (scire facias) (10 Del. C. 4711(a)); an execution may issue within 5 years of entry or of the date the money fell due (10 Del. C. 5072(a))compilation / agency — verified Oct 2026 |
| Renewal window | renew the lien before its 10 years run; executions within 5 years (later ones require the court process in the rules)compilation / agency — verified Oct 2026 |
| Post-judgment interest | on judgments on agreements: 5 percent over the Federal Reserve discount rate (including any surcharge) or the contract rate, WHICHEVER IS LESS, from the date of the judgment (6 Del. C. 2301(a)); the legal rate where no contract rate exists is 5 percent over the discount ratecompilation / agency — verified Oct 2026 |
The Delaware judgment expiration figures on this page were verified against a dated 50-state compilation and Delaware sources as of October 2026; the statute named here is where to check them yourself.
Is there a judgment against you, or one you need to collect?
The renewal window and the exemption deadlines in Delaware are short and they do not wait. A Delaware debt defense or collections attorney can read the docket and tell you where you stand, usually in a free first consultation. Every state bar runs a lawyer-referral service that sets up a low-cost first consultation; legal aid represents many people in debt cases at no cost.
What Delaware Judgment Expiration Actually Means
This part of the Delaware Judgment Expiration guide uses the same sources listed at the end of the page.
Once the time limits run out, the creditor generally can no longer use the court’s collection tools, such as levies, wage attachments or a sheriff’s sale, unless the judgment is first revived. A lien on real estate that is not renewed in time stops binding the property. The debt itself usually does not disappear, and the creditor may still be able to ask the court to revive the judgment.
Confirm the details with the court clerk or an attorney.
Renewal and Revival Under the Delaware Judgment Expiration Rule
Check each Delaware Judgment Expiration point here against your own court papers before you act.
The creditor files for renewal or revival in the court that entered the judgment, inside the window shown in the table. The exact filing and whether the debtor must be notified are set by the statute cited above.
The Judgment Lien in Delaware
Recording the judgment (an abstract or certificate) in the county land records turns it into a lien on the debtor’s real property there. The lien has its own life, which may differ from the judgment’s, and the statute cited above sets both.
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Interest on a Delaware Judgment
Delaware courts generally apply the legal rate in effect when the cause of action arose, not the rate on the day of judgment, according to a Delaware Courts interest guide. Interest is simple interest on the unpaid judgment until it is paid. The Federal Reserve publishes the discount rate the formula uses, and the Delaware Courts guide includes a table of historical discount rates and legal rates.
What a Creditor Can Do While the Delaware Judgment Is Alive
A judgment creditor can ask the court for a writ of execution against property, a bank levy, a wage garnishment where the state allows one, and a debtor examination under oath. Each tool has its own form and its own exemptions.
What a Debtor Can Do Before the Delaware Judgment Expiration
A judgment debtor can claim the exemptions the state provides, negotiate a satisfaction for less than the face amount, pay through the court, or move to vacate a default judgment that was entered without proper service.
Out-of-State Judgments in Delaware
A judgment from another state must first be domesticated in Delaware before it can be enforced here; once it is, the Delaware rules on enforcement and expiration generally apply to it.
Clearing a Paid Delaware Judgment
After payment, the judgment holder must enter satisfaction on the judgment record “forthwith” (10 Del. C. 4751(a)). The statute sets no specific day count. The satisfaction is signed by the judgment holder or their attorney of record (10 Del. C. 4753). A willful failure to enter satisfaction can bring a fine of up to $500 for each failure (10 Del. C. 4751(b)).
Justice of the Peace Court judgments are not liens on real estate unless transferred to the Superior Court. The JP Court keeps all post-judgment proceedings except execution and the sale of real estate (10 Del. C. 9569(d)). The JP self-help page says a JP judgment must be revived to be collected after five years.
The wage-attachment exemption does not apply to collecting fines, costs or taxes owed to the State (10 Del. C. 4913(a)).
Next rung: what a creditor can take from a bank account, and what is protected, is the next question — the Delaware bank-levy page joins this guide when that cluster is live; until then, the CFPB debt-collection page in the sources below is the place to read.
Delaware — the bottom line
- Delaware judgment expiration runs on a fixed clock from the date in the table above; when it passes, the creditor’s court tools stop unless the judgment was renewed in time.
- Renewal under the Delaware judgment expiration rule is the creditor’s job, on the window in the table; a judgment nobody renewed is the one a debtor can finally stop paying on.
- Interest keeps running until the judgment is paid or the Delaware judgment expiration date arrives — the rate and who publishes it are in the table.
Delaware Judgment Expiration FAQ
How long is a judgment good for in Delaware?
A Delaware money judgment is enforceable for 10 years from entry or recording (the real-estate lien term); executions within 5 years, and it can be renewed. Once the time limits run out, the creditor generally can no longer use the court’s collection tools, such as levies, wage attachments or a sheriff’s sale, unless the judgment is first revived.
Can a judgment be renewed in Delaware?
the real-estate lien lasts 10 years from entry or recording unless, within those 10 years, it is renewed by a written agreement signed by the creditor and the debtor (and terre-tenants to bind later-conveyed land), or by the alternative court process the section goes on to set out (scire facias) (10 Del. C.
Does a Delaware judgment expiration mean the debt is gone?
Once the time limits run out, the creditor generally can no longer use the court’s collection tools, such as levies, wage attachments or a sheriff’s sale, unless the judgment is first revived. A lien on real estate that is not renewed in time stops binding the property.
What interest does a Delaware judgment earn?
on judgments on agreements: 5 percent over the Federal Reserve discount rate (including any surcharge) or the contract rate, WHICHEVER IS LESS, from the date of the judgment (6 Del. C. 2301(a)); the legal rate where no contract rate exists is 5 percent over the discount rate
Official Delaware Sources & Resources
- Statute — judgment dormancy, renewal and interest (opened and read): https://law.justia.com/codes/delaware/title-10/chapter-47/subchapter-i/section-4711/
- Statute — judgment dormancy, renewal and interest (opened and read): https://law.justia.com/codes/delaware/title-10/chapter-49/subchapter-xii/section-5072/
- Statute — judgment dormancy, renewal and interest (opened and read): https://law.justia.com/codes/delaware/title-6/chapter-23/section-2301/
- Delaware statute / opinion: https://delcode.delaware.gov/title10/c047/index.html
- Delaware Courts – How to Collect and/or Revive a Judgment in the Justice of the Peace Court (Self-Help): https://www.courts.delaware.gov/help/judgments/jp-revive.aspx
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: consumerfinance.gov
- CFPB — Debt collection: know your rights: consumerfinance.gov
This Delaware judgment expiration guide was last verified against official Delaware sources in October 2026. Rules change — confirm the current rule with the statute or a licensed attorney.
More Delaware Money Rights Guides
- Delaware Bank Levy Exemptions
- Delaware Debt Collection Lawsuit
- Delaware Small Claims Limit
- Money Rights Guides for All 50 States
Disclaimer: This guide is general information, not legal or financial advice. Bonus Bank Daily is an independent educational resource — not a law firm, not a bank, not a debt collector and not a government agency. Judgment, levy, interest-rate and debt rules change — every figure here carries the date we verified it.
Confirm the current rule with the statute, the court clerk or a licensed attorney in your state before you act.