§ 1328.Discharge of attachment

Section 1328 gives a defendant a way to get attached property released before trial by substituting security for the property itself. On notice to the claiming authority and the claiming agent, the defendant can move to discharge the attachment on all or part of the property or debt, paying the claiming agent's fees and expenses and posting an undertaking equal to the value of what is discharged. That undertaking promises to pay the claiming authority the amount of any judgment eventually recovered, up to the undertaking's value. Making the motion, or giving the undertaking, does not by itself count as an appearance in the action, so a defendant can seek release of property without waiving objections to jurisdiction.

When the underlying forfeiture rests on a claimed tax law violation, subdivision 2 caps the undertaking at the lesser of two figures: the amount that would otherwise apply under subdivision 1, or the total unpaid tax and civil penalties tied to the violation. That cap keeps the security requirement in proportion to what the state could be owed under the tax laws.