Due to the passage of a law over 4 years ago entitled the GRAMM-LEACH-BLILEY Act   and some very recent actions by the Federal Trade Commission,  all financial investigations such as Bank Account and Brokerage Account searches must have a permissible purpose.  The investigative methodology must also comply with all restrictions of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, the FTC conditions and the privacy act.

According to attorneys from the FTC, there is only one permissible purpose contained as an exemption in GLB and the FTC interpretation thereof. That one exemption is for child support collection in conjunction with a court order.

In effect, there is no way to collect on a debt, even with a judgment from the court, unless it’s for child support!

In plain terms, unless your Debtor or Defendant, whom you have a court issued judgment against, willingly volunteers to give you the location of his/her bank account or brokerage account, that court document isn’t worth the paper it’s written on.

If that seems to favor the wrong side of the parties involved, blame it on the less than pragmatic politicians in Washington, who sponsored and passed this law.

If you feel that you or your client’s legal and just claim against an individual or company should be collected, write to your Congressmen and Senators urging an amendment to this biased law.