Where an execution is issued upon a judgment entered against the defendant, the claiming agent’s duty with respect to custody and disposition of property or debt levied upon pursuant to an order of attachment is the same as if he or she had levied upon it pursuant to the execution. The priority among two or more orders of attachment against the same defendant shall be in the order in which they were delivered to the officer who levied upon the property or debt. The priority between an order of attachment and an execution, or a payment, delivery or receivership order, is set forth in section five thousand two hundred thirty-four of this chapter.
§ 1332.Disposition of attachment property after execution issued; priority of orders of attachment
Article 13-A. Proceeds of Crime—forfeiture · Last amended 1984 · Last verified July 21, 2026
In one sentenceConverts the claiming agent's custody of attached property into execution-levy custody once a judgment is entered and an execution issues, and sets the priority among competing orders of attachment and between attachment and execution based on delivery order and cross-referenced CPLR rules.
Full Text of CPLR 1332
Plain-English Summary
Section 1332 answers what happens to attached property after the claiming authority wins its case. Once a judgment is entered and an execution is issued against the defendant, the claiming agent's job managing that property does not change -- the agent holds and disposes of it exactly as if the execution itself had been the thing that put a levy on it in the first place.
The section then turns to priority. When more than one order of attachment reaches the same defendant's property, the orders rank in the order they were handed to the officer who levied on the property or debt -- first delivered, first in line, regardless of which order was signed first or which case moved faster.
For the harder question -- how an attachment stacks up against an execution, or against a payment, delivery, or receivership order -- section 1332 does not set its own rule. It points to CPLR 5234, the general enforcement-of-judgments priority provision, and lets that section control.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens to attached property once the claiming authority gets a judgment?
The claiming agent continues to hold and dispose of it, but now under the same duties that would apply if the property had been levied on directly by an execution instead of an order of attachment.
How is priority decided when two orders of attachment target the same property?
By delivery order -- whichever order reached the levying officer first has priority, regardless of when either order was granted or filed with the court.
Does an execution creditor outrank an earlier order of attachment?
Section 1332 does not decide that question itself; it defers to CPLR 5234, which sets the priority rules between attachments, executions, and payment, delivery, or receivership orders.
Does section 1332 apply before a judgment is entered?
No, it governs only after judgment and after an execution has issued; before that point, the property remains subject to the attachment provisions in sections 1313 through 1330.
Can a claiming agent be replaced by a sheriff once execution issues?
The statute does not require a handoff to a different officer -- the same claiming agent keeps custody, now operating under execution-levy duties instead of attachment duties.
Amendment History
Add, L 1984, ch 669, § 1, eff Aug 1, 1984 and applicable to crimes committed on and after Aug 1, 1984.
Source & verification. Provision text, History, and Advisory
Committee Notes are reproduced verbatim from the Consolidated Laws of New York.
Last verified July 21, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: CPLR 1332 priority of attachmentNew York forfeiture execution priorityclaiming agent execution levyorder of attachment priority NYCPLR 5234 forfeiture