Is a Petition or a Claim the Best Choice to Get Cash or Valuables Returned When Seized by Customs, USPIS, HSI, or DEA?

After Seizure and Forfeiture Letter, You Must Decide: Petition or Claim

You have had your cash seized while going through TSA at the airport, or pulled over by an Officer, or you mailed or were receiving cash by mail, UPS, or FedEx.

At the airport, you will be given a custody receipt, Form 6051S, and then a CAFRA seizure letter, which will arrive certified. If you are pulled over or cash was mailed, you will receive a certified Notice of Seizure and Information to Claimants CAFRA letter explaining your rights.

It is a confusing four-page letter that gives you four choices in the election of proceedings form.

We will talk about the only two that matter, the Petition versus the Claim.

Seizure Letter Suggests Petition – Customs Wants the Upper Hand – Always!

The four choices in your Election of Proceedings are to file a petition, offer in compromise, abandon, or file a claim.

eop cafra

Again, we are only talking about a Petition versus a Claim. Many attorneys maintain that you should file a petition, which is the first “election” choice, and that is why the Government makes it the first option. The Government always wants the upper hand in forfeitures.

In a Petition form, you explain why your money was legal and why it should be returned.

The decision is up to the Fines, Penalties, and Forfeiture Division of Customs. You are given an opportunity to explain. However, if you say something negative, you are bound by that explanation.

There is no opportunity to participate in the “due process” of legal arguments. As the old saying goes, he who represents himself has a fool for a client.

Far too often, the wrong things are said by the well-meaning client.

Claim Has More Due Process – If Your Story is Not Airtight – Most Are Not

When you choose a Claim, your case will be decided attorney to attorney 99.9% of the time. With a Claim, there is a time limit of 90 days for the government’s lawyer to make a decision based upon your attorney’s persuasive argument. In contrast, a Petition may take months or years to be rejected.

After a Petition is rejected, there is time to “supplement” your petition, and I have never seen a rejection reversed. Once you receive the second rejection, there is nothing else you can do. Cash and property, if forfeited, are gone.

Submitting a Petition is like dealing with the DMV. I would rather deal with a Government lawyer than a DMV or FP&F employee. The DMV and FP&F find it very easy to say, “No, I do not know who makes the decision… have I said NO yet?”

Most Times No To a Petition, Sometimes Yes (Experienced Lawyers Know)  

Choosing to file a claim is why our Forfeiture Law Firm is so successful. It is crucial to understand your opponent and employ a strategy that has proven effective.

I disagree with my attorney friends who say a petition is better.

It is easier for the lawyer, but is it better?

There are jurisdictions or FP&F offices that will ask our office to withdraw the claim and submit a petition. That is fine because they are signaling that we will get the property returned. We have found that to be the case in some Texas and Arizona offices, but not in most cases of substantial value to Customs.

A Claim Does Not Automatically Mean Going to Court, But It Sends a Message That Your Lawyer Knows the Time Deadlines and What They Are Doing

Some of my lawyer friends maintain that filing a claim will inevitably heat up and lead to a court case. I respectfully disagree.

A claim will send the case to a Government attorney who will listen to the forfeiture defense attorney’s case law and reasoning.

All joking aside, the DMV or FP&F appears to pretend to understand the legal arguments and may reject them because there is no recourse when they say “NO”.

Some forfeiture lawyers will say, “We don’t submit a claim, so the cases don’t get heated up and go to court. That is not true.  

Examples of How and Why a Claim is Better – Experienced Lawyers Know

I can tell you about any recent cases involving $100,000 to over $56,000,000 that did not go to court.

The statistics show that it is extremely rare for the Government to take a claim to federal court. 

The Government’s lawyers don’t allow their tempers to cause them to work harder.

The incentive of the Government Lawyer is to settle the case before the 90-day time frame expires, and they are compelled by law to return all the property and cash.

The Government Lawyers decide whether to go to court or settle. In 99.9% of the cases I have filed, The Government has settled rather than litigating with me, an attorney that has federal trial experience and a reputation for handling forfeitures since 1990.

Government lawyers have to pick their battles wisely, and they are only human.

Call Forfeiture Law Firm for an Honest Assessment of Your Specific Case Today!

Call our boutique Forfeiture Law Firm and talk over your situation with complete confidentiality.

I have the advantage of being a federal criminal defense trial attorney since 1990, so I can explain what will help and what will not.

Call us at (619) 258-8888, and one of our bilingual paralegal specialists will gather the basic information. I will then take the call or return your call by the end of the day

Let’s get your cash, currency, and valuables back as soon as possible.

It is not illegal to carry, mail, or fly the airlines with cash or valuables in the United States of America, and I believe that with every bit of my being.

Our firm is affordable, and your success is essential for our success.

Call us today at (619) 258-8888.

We Do Better When You Do Better!

We are going to tell you if a Petition or Claim fits your case the best.

We know when to be nice and when to be tough, but your lawyer should never be scared.

Bottom line is that we do better when you do better.