Frozen bank account

Bank Levy Lawyer in Queens

Preserving Your Financial Rights in Queens

A bank levy (also called an attachment or garnishment) is when a creditor orders a bank to freeze your account without your permission. When your bank freezes your account, you won’t be able to access or transfer money, pay your bills, or fund checks. If you have direct deposit, your income will likely be frozen as well. Outstanding checks could bounce, and you may be responsible for subsequent fees.

A bank levy is a creditor’s method of legally seizing your funds to cover unpaid debt. Most creditors need to sue you in court and obtain a judgment against you before they can acquire a court order telling your bank to freeze your account, but state and federal agencies (e.g. the IRS) can do so without going through the court system.

At the Law Office of Seni Popat, we our Queens bankruptcy attorney can help you prevent bank levies or, if already instated, lift them as soon as possible. Whether we help negotiate with creditors, develop payment plans, or file bankruptcy, we work tirelessly to ensure our clients retain access to their funds and have what they need to secure their financial futures.

For immediate assistance, contact our bank levy attorney in Queens at (718) 340-3385 today.

How Do Creditors Find Your Bank Accounts?

When you apply for loans or credit, you typically must include bank account information on the application. Creditors might also have access to your account information if you previously wrote them a check.

If they don’t have access to your bank account information, they may serve you with a debtor’s examination notice, which requires you to testify under oath about your assets. The debtor’s examination can only occur after the creditor receives a judgment from the court.

What to Do if Your Creditor Freezes Your Account

If you receive notice that your bank has been ordered to freeze your account, you cannot prevent it from occurring. You do, however, have a few options that may quickly restore your access to your funds. If you need your funds to meet your basic needs, for example, you can likely remove the bank levy, but you must respond to the notice within 90 days.

Here are a few types of funds that may be exempt from a levy under New York law:

• Pensions
• Social Security/Supplemental Security Income
• Spousal/child support or maintenance
• Welfare, unemployment, or disability/workers’ comp benefits

If you choose to claim exemptions or challenge the attachment, we can help you file papers demonstrating why the attachment is unreasonable or attend a hearing with you to help you explain why your funds qualify for exemptions. In the meantime, you can contact your employer to stop direct deposits, as you will lose access to any funds that enter your frozen account.

Negotiating with Creditors

Your creditors may remove the levy if you contact them in a timely manner and successfully negotiate a payment plan. Government entities are particularly likely to accept a payment plan in exchange for releasing your funds. Our attorney can assist you with creditor negotiation, advocating for your rights while developing a repayment plan the creditors will accept. If we need to take your case to court, we can aggressively litigate your case.

Filing Bankruptcy to Remove a Bank Levy

One of the most powerful benefits of bankruptcy is the automatic stay, which freezes all collection actions—including bank levies. Whether you opt for liquidation bankruptcy under Chapter 7 or debt reorganization through Chapter 13, we can help you file bankruptcy to restore your access to your account and establish a new financial beginning.

Get Help from Our Queens Bank Levy Legal Team

Whether you are hoping to prevent a frozen bank account or remove an existing levy, the Law Office of Seni Popat is here to provide legal services with the level of urgency your situation requires. Raised in Queens, our bankruptcy attorney is dedicated to protecting rights and improving lives throughout the state of New York.

Schedule your free consultation with our bank levy lawyer in Queens by calling (718) 340-3385 today.