Civil Judgment

• Funds cannot be seized from a bank account without the explicit permission of a civil court judge. A bank is not allowed to provide funds to an account holder's creditors unless a judge orders it to do so. To get the approval of a judge, the creditor must file suit in civil court and win damages from the debtor. If the debtor doesn't pay the damages, the judge can order the seizure.
  
  

Bank Account Seizure

• If a judge receives a motion to seize the funds within a bank account and honors it, then the creditor will be allowed to present the debtor's bank with a court order demanding that the debtor's account be frozen. When an account is frozen, a debtor can no longer withdraw from or transfer money out of it. Generally, after the account is frozen, the creditor will be allowed to draw funds from it.
  
  

Considerations

• In many cases, a judge will not allow a creditor to seize a bank account. Many states have laws that forbid the seizure of certain bank accounts. For example, many states require that the debtor first pass a means test before his account can be seized. This means that the debtor must earn a certain amount of money, or his bank account will be ineligible for seizure.
  
  

Appeal

• Before an account is seized, the debtor may have a chance to protest the seizure. If he does not, he will be given a chance to appeal it. Depending on state and federal law, the debtor can appeal the seizure on various grounds. For example, a bank account that contains federal benefits, such as Social Security payments, cannot be seized. If an appeal is granted, then the seizure will be lifted.