§985 Civil Forfeiture of Real Property

Summary

All government attempts to take real estate must happen through a court case. The government cannot grab real property or kick out owners or people living there while the forfeiture case is pending. Putting a public notice on the property or briefly entering to inspect and inventory it does not count as a seizure. To start a forfeiture case the government must file a complaint, post notice on the property, and give the owner a copy. If the owner is a fugitive, lives abroad and service fails, or cannot be found after reasonable effort, the government may use the State’s rules for substitute service. If the property is posted, the court does not need a special arrest-warrant-for-property to establish control. The court may allow a pre-trial seizure only if the government asks the court first and the court either holds a hearing where the owner can be heard or, in urgent cases, finds probable cause and that less strict steps (like a notice of the lawsuit, a restraining order, or a bond) would not protect the government. If seized without prior notice, the owner must get a quick hearing to challenge it. This only applies to real property, not money, sale proceeds, or assets meant to buy property, and it does not affect the court’s ability to issue restraining orders.