Garnishment and Overdrafts

Question:

I received a garnishment summons on a customer's personal and business accounts. Most of the accounts were overdrawn, save for one account that had roughly $10,000 in it. Can the bank use that $10,000 to bring some of the overdrawn accounts to a zero balance instead of setting it aside to the garnishment?

Answer:

"First in time is first in right," is a nice, trite little saying you will hear from the attaching party via the court. Once the funds have been attached by the garnishment any right of offset you may or may not have had is gone.

First published on BankersOnline.com 3/14/11