View Single Post
  #8  
Old 11-17-2007, 07:24 PM
slush fund slush fund is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: TAGing LAGtards
Posts: 167
Default Re: investments protected from medical or legal liabilities

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]

the short answer is almost none. i collect on judgments for a living and the general rule is if you have something to lose, it can be taken.

here are the exceptions: a small number of states have a full homestead exemption, Florida where i am being one, but for only your primary residence. yeah, that's why OJ lives here. so that means no rental properties at all. while a homestead exemption will prevent any attempts at foreclosure, the judgment becomes a lien against the property that in most cases has to be satisfied if you want to sell or refinance or otherwise pass title.

other than that, bank accounts, brokerage accounts, corporate shares in companies you personally own are all accessible for seizure. one difference between owning a corporation and an LLC, is that a creditor can seize your corporate shares if you own a corp., but can only get what is called a charging lien against an LLC. a charging lien entitles the creditor to any future cash disbursements but you retain ownership of the LLC.

alright here is the secret to full and complete asset protection from creditors, get married. after you get married place every asset and account in you and your wife's name together. if a judgment is ever obtained against you, none of the jointly owned assets can be accessed unless the judgment is against both you and your wife together. so if you are married, never get joint credit cards or apply for credit jointly or buy an car in both of your names, always do it individually. this doesnt apply to corps of LLCs tho because they can't be owned jointly as a "tenancy by the entireties" that other assets are in a marriage

[/ QUOTE ]

What about IRAs and pensions? I always heard those were protected against judgments. An example is OJ Simpson, who still lives off a pretty sweet NFL pension even with a $20M judgement hanging over his head.

My cash brokerage account is in the name of an LLC owned by my wife and I. How safe is that?

[/ QUOTE ]

yes, IRA's, pensions and annuities are protected in my state and yes as a previous poster said, collecting judgments will be different from state to state. i am a collections lawyer but i only practice in florida and my answer was kind of general but i was trying to answer OP's question as to the investments that i am looking to go after, real property, bank accounts, brokerage accounts, and interests in businesses.

as for your brokerage account, i have never encountered that situation before but if i were to answer your question if it safe from an judgment against you, i would say your money is safer if you just had the account as a tenancy by the entireties account jointly with your wife. this is just in florida but if i had a judgment against you, while i could not seize the cash in the account, i could put a charging lien against your interest in the LLC that would entitle me to your half interest of any cash disbursements from the LLC made to you and your wife. like i said, this is how it is in my state but i do belong to a national email listserve of collection attorneys and if you want i will ask an attorney from your state if its similar there when i am in the office on monday
Reply With Quote