(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), a deposit account or safe-deposit box standing in the name of a person other than the defendant, either alone or together with other third persons, is not subject to levy under Section 488.455 or 488.460 unless the levy is authorized by court order. The levying officer shall serve a copy of the court order on the third person at the time the copy of the writ of attachment and the notice of attachment are served on the third person.
§ 488.465.Deposit Account Or Safe-Deposit Box Standing In Name of Person Other Than Defendant
Title 6.5. Attachment · Chapter 8. Levy Procedures; Lien of Attachment; Management and Disposition of Attached Property · Article 2. Methods of Levy · Enacted 1984 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 488.465 bars levy on a deposit account or safe-deposit box standing in a third person's name without a court order, except when the account or box stands in the defendant's own name, the defendant's spouse's name, or a qualifying fictitious business name naming only the defendant or spouse.
Full Text of § 488.465
(b) A court order is not required as a prerequisite to levy on a deposit account or safe-deposit box standing in the name of any of the following:
(1) The defendant, whether alone or together with third persons.
(2) The defendant's spouse, whether alone or together with other third persons. An affidavit showing that the person in whose name the account stands is the defendant's spouse shall be delivered to the financial institution at the time of levy.
(3) A fictitious business name if an unexpired fictitious business name statement filed pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 17900) of Part 3 of Division 7 of the Business and Professions Code lists as the persons doing business under the fictitious business name either (A) the defendant or (B) the defendant's spouse or (C) the defendant and the defendant's spouse, but does not list any other person. A copy of a fictitious business name statement, certified as provided in Section 17926 of the Business and Professions Code, that satisfies these requirements shall be delivered to the financial institution at the time of levy and, if a person other than the defendant is listed in the statement, an affidavit showing that the other person is the defendant's spouse shall also be delivered to the financial institution at the time of levy.
(c) In any case where a deposit account in the name of a person other than the defendant, whether alone or together with the defendant, is levied upon, the financial institution shall not pay to the levying officer the amount levied upon until being notified to do so by the levying officer. The levying officer may not require the financial institution to pay the amount levied upon until the expiration of 15 days after service of notice of attachment on the third person.
Plain-English Summary
Because a bank account or safe-deposit box can be jointly held or held in a name that only loosely tracks the defendant, Section 488.465 protects third-party account holders from having their funds swept up without judicial oversight. A levy under § 488.455 or § 488.460 on an account or box standing in a name other than the defendant's ordinarily requires a court order, served on the third person along with the writ and notice.
Three exceptions dispense with the court order: the account or box stands in the defendant's own name (alone or with others), in the defendant's spouse's name (with an affidavit of the marital relationship delivered at levy), or under a fictitious business name whose current statement lists only the defendant, the spouse, or both. Even without a court order, subdivision (c) delays payout: where the account is jointly held with a non-defendant, the institution does not pay the levying officer until the officer gives notice, and the officer cannot demand payment until 15 days after the third person was served with the notice of attachment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a plaintiff levy on a bank account held jointly with someone who isn't the defendant?
Only with a court order, unless the account stands in the defendant's own name, the defendant's spouse's name, or a qualifying fictitious business name naming only the defendant or spouse, per § 488.465(a)-(b).
How long does the bank wait before paying out a jointly held account after levy?
Under § 488.465(c), the levying officer cannot require payment until 15 days after the third person was served with the notice of attachment.
Amendment History
Repealed and added by Stats. 1984, Ch. 538, Sec. 6.3.
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: levying joint bank account california attachmentcourt order needed to attach third party accountccp 488.465 spouse account levy