Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in New Jersey

A bank levy was entered against me in NJ without any notice. I keep trying to get the court officer on the phone to find out more info but to no avail. My check is set to be direct deposited into my account tomorrow and I will have no access to it. I literally just moved into a new apartment and I need to be able to pay my first months rent and I need money for food. What can I do so I can get access to my account? I am more than willing to set up a payment plan if need be, but as it stands I have $0 because they've taken everything from me.


Asked on 3/04/13, 8:18 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Jeffrey Walters Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Walters, LLC

Your account is not frozen, only the funds that were present in the account on the day of the bank levy are inaccessible. They would have to do another levy in order to get additional funds that go into your account after that time. To be safe, you should consider withdrawing the direct deposit funds the moment they go into your account. You may want to monitor your balance all day so that you can get to the bank without delay as soon as the funds hit your account. This is assuming you cannot stop the direct deposit from occurring in the first place. As for the funds already frozen, you should consider asserting your statutory $1,000 exemption. Instructions will be in the notice that the court officer is supposed to send you. That may take several weeks until they are returned. You may wish to take steps to resolve this matter with the judgment holder so you are not looking over your shoulder all of the time. In the meantime, you may wish to refrain from putting money in a bank account so you are not a sitting duck for another bank levy.

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Answered on 3/04/13, 12:06 pm


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