[courtney33]

I am secondary on my brothers bank account he is in the military, I had a garnishment on my account and they took the money from his account even though it is not mine, is that legal?

[JudyKayTee]

Yes, if your name was on the account, if you could withdraw the money if you needed/wanted it it was a joint account.

Everything in it was yours and his - either one of you had total access to the account.

If you could NOT use the account and were named for some other purpose you need to explain the circumstances.

Was the money in the account his pay for serving in the Military?

[courtney33]

Yes all deposits in this account are from the army, I was on the account to pay his bills why he was in afghanistan for 18 months, they garnished this account 2 weeks after he returned home, all is well I paid him back the money the same day and took my name off his account BUT I was just angry to think what if I hadn't the money and they just took from him money he had earned overseas that was not mine.

[JudyKayTee]

You could have protested that he was in the Military, it was Military pay and MAYBE the money would have been returned.

If he's deployed again a better plan is to have power of attorney for his bank accounts. That keeps him the sole owner.

[ScottGem]

yes all deposits in this account are from the army, i was on the account to pay his bills why he was in afghanistan for 18 mos, they garnished this account 2 weeks after he returned home, all is well i paid him back the money the same day and took my name off of his account BUT i was just angry to think what if i hadnt the money and they just took from him money he had earned overseas that was not mine.

First, if you knew you had a judgment against you, then you were, at least partially, at fault for putting your name on the account. By doing so, you put his money at risk. Second, if you had the money to reimburse him why weren't you paying the debt you owe?

The anger should be directed more inward, not at the creditor who is simply trying to collect what is owed them.

[courtney33]

To scottgem,(wow, are you a rep for capital one?) obviously if I knew I had a judgement on my bank account I wouldn't put my brother in jepordy of losing any money he's earned, let alone while he is overseas in afghanistan. The money was not so much the issue of my problem, like I stated earlier the monies were paid to him in full on the same day they were taken out, it was how it happened. I didn't realize I had to justify the whole story but now I'm compelled to as you assume I am just someone who runs away from my past (mind you this judgement stemmed from an account 13 yrs ago). I have my own account at the same bank which had plenty of money to supply this judgement, but they took it from the account with him and I on it, I would have liked to not be on his account at all but like I said he was overseas and I had to pay his bills. With that being said thank you for your answers(judgements)they are appreciated. To Judykaytee, thank you also for your genuine HELP with no judgements attatched, that would be my reason for joining this site after all.

[JudyKayTee]

to scottgem,(wow, are u a rep for capital one?) obviously if i knew i had a judgement on my bank account i wouldnt put my brother in jepordy of losing any money hes earned, let alone while he is overseas in afghanistan. The money was not so much the issue of my problem, like i stated earlier the monies were paid to him in full on the same day they were taken out, it was how it happened. I didnt realize i had to justify the whole story but now im compelled to as you assume i am just someone who runs away from my past (mind u this judgement stemmed from an account 13 yrs ago). I have my own account at the same bank which had plenty of money to supply this judgement, but they took it from the account with him and i on it, i would have liked to not be on his account at all but like i said he was overseas and i had to pay his bills. With that being said thank you for your answers(judgements)they are appreciated. To Judykaytee, thank you also for your genuine HELP with no judgements attatched, that would be my reason for joining this site afterall.

If the Judgment was taken without your knowledge you can get it set aside. You MUST be served with notice of the lawsuit and you MUST be served with the Judgment in order for anyone to move against bank accounts. That's the law everywhere I know.

The creditor will "grab" whatever is fastest.

[ScottGem]

No, I have no affiliation with Capital One. In fact, you did not mention who the creditor was or even what this bill was for. But you DID say; "i had a garnishment on my account". Which led me to believe that you were aware of the judgment.

Judy had already covered the legal issues which is why I didn't address them. I did feel that you needed to put this situation in perspective. You were angry at the creditor who apparently did not act illegally. The creditor only knew that you were listed as an owner of the account. I doubt if they were aware that your brother was deployed military.

This site is a bit different from other Q&A sites, especially in the legal forums. We try to answer questions as completely and as accurately as we can. We believe it is helpful to the asker to understand ALL sides of the issue to best deal with their problem. So I felt you needed to understand this situation from the perspective of the creditor.

I don't know if you are a person who runs away from your past. I just know that you ignored this part of your past. You probably had good reason to default on that debt. But when you got yourself back on your feet, you should have made an effort to settle the debt.

Again, my response was meant to be helpful, even though I know it was not something you wanted to hear.

[Fr_Chuck]

Yes, there should be no way that they would have a judgement without you being aware of it, You would have to have been served notice.

Unless you moved or was not opening your mail