Protecting Funds from Illegal Seizure
Alarmed by the number of calls coming in dealing with the improper seizure of bank accounts containing funds which are exempt from seizure under federal law, including Social Security, disability benefits, pensions, child support and other essential income, Empire Justice staff began looking at the issue more closely. Read More
Banking Alternatives for Dedicated Savings Accounts
As DAP advocates know, retroactive benefits for children’s SSI cases must be put into a Dedicated Savings Account (DSA) and used for extraordinary items related to the child’s disability. Since SSA will not pay any retroactive benefits until the DSA is established, what can representative payees do if they have a bad bank history and cannot find a financial institution that will accept their account? Read More
Exempt Funds Given More Protection
The protections afforded Social Security and SSI recipients under 42 U.S.C §407 may take on new meaning in New York next year. Known as the anti-attachment statute, §407 has long provided that, with few exceptions, Social Security and SSI benefits are exempt from creditors. DAP advocates, however, know all too well the problems that beneficiaries face when their benefits are nonetheless seized from their bank accounts by creditors. Read More
Are Bank Freezes Thawing?
Seizures of exempt funds in bank accounts continue to be in the news. Both Tanya Douglas and Johnson Tyler of South Brooklyn Legal Services appeared on the CBS evening news last month, recounting the plights of clients who have had their accounts illegally frozen. Read More
