Can I garnish money a third party owes to my judgment debtor, not just a bank account, in Ontario?

Yes — garnishment in Ontario isn't limited to bank accounts; it can generally reach any debt a third party owes to your judgment debtor, provided that debt is genuinely owing and payable. This can include money owed to the debtor under a contract, rent a tenant owes to a debtor who is a landlord, an amount owed by a customer to a debtor's business, or wages an employer owes an employee. The key requirement is that the third party actually owes the debtor money; garnishment can't reach something the third party merely might owe in the future, or an amount that's genuinely disputed rather than clearly payable.

Practically, this means a creditor with information about who owes their debtor money, beyond just knowing where they bank, has real options for enforcement even where a debtor keeps little in a traditional bank account. The third party who receives the garnishment notice, sometimes called the garnishee, is generally required to pay the specified amount to the court or creditor instead of to the debtor directly, and can face consequences for ignoring a valid garnishment notice. Identifying the right third party to target often comes from information gathered during an examination of the debtor about their income and assets.