(a) Except as otherwise provided in Section 486.040, the temporary protective order may prohibit a transfer by the defendant of any of the defendant's property in this state subject to the levy of the writ of attachment. The temporary protective order shall describe the property in a manner adequate to permit the defendant to identify the property subject to the temporary protective order.
§ 486.050.Order May Prohibit Transfer By Defendant of Any of Defendant's Property Located In State
Title 6.5. Attachment · Chapter 6. Temporary Protective Order · Last amended 2009 · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 486.050 lets a temporary protective order bar the defendant from transferring in-state property subject to levy, requires the order to describe that property well enough to identify, and exempts ordinary-course sales of farm products held for sale or inventory.
Full Text of § 486.050
(b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), if the property is farm products held for sale or is inventory, the temporary protective order shall not prohibit the defendant from transferring the property in the ordinary course of business, but the temporary protective order may impose appropriate restrictions on the disposition of the proceeds from that type of transfer.
Plain-English Summary
The core protective feature of the order lives here. Except as § 486.040 otherwise provides, the order may prohibit the defendant from transferring property located in California that would be subject to levy under the writ of attachment. The order has to describe that property in enough detail for the defendant to know exactly what is covered — a defendant cannot be expected to comply with a freeze on property it cannot identify.
That freeze has a built-in exception for a business trying to stay open. If the property is farm products held for sale or is inventory, the order cannot stop the defendant from transferring it in the ordinary course of business. The court can still impose reasonable restrictions on what happens to the money that transfer generates, but the underlying sales continue.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a temporary protective order freeze everything a defendant owns?
No. It reaches only property located in California that is subject to levy under the writ of attachment, and the order must describe that property well enough for the defendant to identify it.
Can a business defendant keep selling inventory while the order is in effect?
Yes. Section 486.050 exempts ordinary-course-of-business sales of farm products held for sale or inventory from the transfer prohibition, though the court can restrict what happens to the sale proceeds.
Does this section always control the order's terms?
It applies except as otherwise provided in § 486.040, which gives the court broader discretion over the order's contents.
Amendment History
Amended by Stats 2008 ch 179 (SB 1498),s 35, eff. 1/1/2009.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 28, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: what property can a temporary protective order freezeinventory farm products exception temporary protective order