Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in New York

Re: Frozen Bank Account

They are executing on a judgment. They can get the money wither buy you making arrangements with them to get it or they can go to court to haveit released to them.

Good Luck

RRG

Re: Frozen Bank Account

This case should be handled by you contacting the creditor and letting them know of your limited resources and health needs. A normal person would decline to enforce the judgment on this basis. If they refuse, go to the hospital and explain the situation to them.

Good luck.

Re: Frozen Bank Account

In earlier response to this question (of 5/15/06),I cited New York law which exempts certain funds from being seized by creditors. Examples: creditors cannot take debtor's child support payments & creditors cannot seize debtor's Social Security benefits to satisfy debt.

Below, I provide additional practical info on court procedures below to make use of these laws exempting certain funds of debtor's.

However,note that unlike child support payments & Social Security benefits,law is much less clear cut as regards your issues; law does not explicitly exempt/protect money designated for medical treatment copayments from judgment creditors. Therefore,there's no guarantees on how much, if any,money will be released to you if you attempt legal action nor is there any guarantee that you would win a lawsuit down the road against firm that froze account. Therefore,as other responding attorneys advised,it might be good idea to contact law firm which froze account & explain the situation and see if something acceptable can be worked out.

If that does not work,then you can take up matter with the same court at same location from which judgment against you was made which resulted in freezing account.(A copy of that judgment must be provided to you on your demand by firm which had your account frozen; or you can make "Order to Show Cause" motion in court to get copy of judgment). At that court,ask for pro se clerk of that court and ask that court clerk about paperwork & procedures for VVACATING restraint on your bank account, i.e., tfreeze",at least to extent of releasing funds which are exempt from your creditors' collection attempts.At that time you will want to have with you documents to prove amounts you need for the chemotherapy copayments & your deposit of $600 paycheck.

As I noted above,law I cited to argue that money needed for your therapy copayments should be exempted & protected from creditor's collection efforts does not explicitly exempt money earmarked for medical treatment: Section 5205(h)(1) of New York's Civil Practice Law and Rules exempts from creditors' collection efforts & protects "all property . . . . that is necessary and proper to maintain or assist in sustaining one or more major life activities ...".I list below some examples of phrase "major life activiities " used in other areas of the law. See if some or all of them them may fit into results of interruption of chemotherapy to prepare an argument that money you need to pay your chemotherapy copayment is necessary to sustain "major life activities" within meaning of the law I quoted above which exempts & protects such from creditors' debt collection efforts.For example, "major life activities" for purposes of Americans with Disabilites Act (ADA) include "caring for oneself,performing manual tasks,walking,seeing,hearing, speaking, breathing,learning & working" 29 C.F.R. 31630.2 (1))& reaching,lifting,standing & sitting (EEOC's Interpretive Guidance).

Re: Frozen Bank Account

I would only add to the other replies which you have received, that the following New York State statutes may provide a legal basis to compel release of at least some of your money.

The following are excerpted from that part of New York's statutory law code entitled the Civil

Practice Law and Rules: specifically, in Article 52 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules, Section 5205 which specifies the creditor's

PERSONAL PROPERTY EXEMPT FROM APPLICATION TO THE SATISFACTION OF MONEY JUDGMENTS

Section 5205(c) INCOME EXEMPTIONS exempts your following personal property from being applied to satisfy a money judgment against you:

"ninety percent of the earnings of the judgment debtor for his personal services rendered within sixty days before, or at any time after, an income execution is delivered . . . or a motion is made to secure the application of the judgment debtor's earnings to the satisfacion of the jugment ... " While I have not had experience applying this statute, it seems to indicate that 90% of your $600 paycheck is exempt from your creditor and must be released to you.

Moreover, Section 5205(h)(1) of the Civil Practice law and Rules exempts your following personal property from being applied to satisfy any money judgment against you (I have used UPPERCASE for emphasis: "any and all medical and dental accessions to the human body AND ALL PERSONAL PROPERTY . . . THAT IS NECESSARY OR PROPER TO MAINTAIN OR ASSIST IN SUSTAINING OR MAINTAINING OE OR MORE MAJOR LIFE ACTIVITIES ... " which could be argued to require your creditor to release to you any money needed for the co-pay of your chemotherapy.

Moreover, if indeed the above statutes indicate that these monies should be relesed to you and that they are being withheld from you unlawfully even after you have notified your creditors of your situation, perhaps you might have the basis for a lawsuit against them, for example, for infliction of emotional distress.