Legal Question in Business Law in Virginia
Lien against my business checking account
I moved out of the City Of Hampton 9/04 and am current on all personal property taxes to them. I have been picked up for pp taxes where I live now. The City of Hampton sent me a ''Notice of Lien and Demand for Payment'' notice. I have called the Commissioner of Revenue office four times and each time they told me the account was adjusted and I was due a refund for 2004 taxes since I overpaid. The bank the lien was sent to knows nothing about the lien, the commissioners office knew nothing about the lien-can a lein be put on my business account without a court order? It's no as if I ignored the erroneous request from the City of Hampton. I called immediately and began trying to sort the situation out. I went to City of Hampton treasurers office this afternoon and recv'd a Notice of Lien release, but it makes it sound as if I actually did owe them money and paid it to satisfy the account. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Also, the Treasurers office sent me a notice through the mail with ''PAST DUE'' stamped in red and highlighted in yellow -on the outside of the envelope-isn't this illegal?
Thank you,
Katy Levin
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Lien against my business checking account
Welcome to the wonderful world of government. Ultimately, the best thing you can do is run for office and help some people find a rewarding new, satisfying life in another line of work.
I am confused about whether your personal property taxes are being taxed against your business bank account. If you are a sole proprietor, alright, but if the business is a different name, that sounds strange.
Yes, about the only people who can put a lien on your account without a court order -- and without the slightest obligation to be correct -- are the tax authorities. In this election season go to some fundraisers for $35 a pop and ask your Virginia legislator to fix this and require someone to actually prove you owe the money before they start throwing liens around like hand grenades.
However, there is no easy answer except bugging them. Note that you will probably need to talk to both the Commmissioner of the Revenue (who assesses taxes and decides if they are due) and the Treasurer (who collects the taxes). Both will blame the other, and say there is nothing they can do, because it is the other side's fault. But with some patient shuttle diplomacy you may be able to get the two of them to clear it up.
If it is a lot of money, you may want to change banks and make sure you do not tell the County what bank you are using or write any checks to them. Then perhaps they will get it cleared up before they try to yank money out of your account.
Ultimately, you can sue to recover money wrongfully taken. This is a little tricky in terms of who you have to sue, etc.
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