San Jose Asset Search Private Investigator

SAN JOSE ASSET SEARCH PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR

Stryker Investigation Services Inc. One solution for all your investigative services since 2000

STRYKER’S INVESTIGATION OFFICE: (800) 733-1950

Does a Debtor owe you money? Do you have a judgment against them? 

Looking for a San Jose Asset Search Private Investigator? Stryker provides the Best-in-Class professional asset search investigation services to law firms, businesses, and private clients. We are an investigation agency that specializes in representing creditors as aggressively as the law allows in matters of judgment enforcement and recovery. Whether you’re looking to conduct a pre-litigation / pre-judgment asset search, or you already have a civil judgment in place and want to find bank accounts for a bank levy. At Stryker, we bring the same persistent determination to go the extra mile, if that’s what it takes to get you an equitable outcome. You won’t get lost in the shuffle with our firm, because we provide individualized attention to each case and each person. Our consultations are free of charge, and the consultation allows you an opportunity to talk to someone who understands your situation. We provide pre-litigation and post-judgment remedies to judgment creditors throughout the US.

We provide due diligence investigations of either a businesses economic profile or individual’s assets — an individual’s asset report will include; debts, available employment information, previous or pending lawsuits as part of our investigation reports. Our Pre-litigation asset report includes a comprehensive, detailed report of all public records including, Real Estate records, Deeds, liens on the property, businesses and their officers, litigation history to name a few items. We offer both statewide and nationwide asset searches; of a businesses assets or an individual’s assets. These asset searches are a two-part discovery process of both private and public information.

EXPERT WITNESS EXPERIENCE

Expert witness rules vary by jurisdiction. See State Civil Procedure Rules. In federal courts, expert witness testimony is governed by Article VII of the Federal Rules of Evidence.

As a professional asset search company, we search for Tangible Assets; (fixed) and Tangible Assets; (liquid) our bank account searches can be conducted [locally] statewide, or more expansive search can be conducted nationwide, or even out of the country. After your judgment is entered you will be informed by the court clerk that court judgments are not self-enforcing. Sometimes a solvent or honest debtors will want to pay soon after a judgment is entered. The judgment will show up on credit reports and will be a matter of public record. This will be a problem for any judgment debtor attempting to borrow money.

While working on behalf of our San Jose and bay area clients seeking to enforce civil judgments awarding financial damages or seeking the return of funds misappropriated by the use of conversion or other means. Stryker can identify missing or unknown assets, previously unknown or hidden bank, saving, brokerage or international accounts. Our experience includes multi-jurisdictional investigations involving offshore capital flight havens, creditor-unfriendly jurisdictions, complex investment group structures, nominee and alter ego companies.

PRE-LITIGATION DUE DILIGENCE

Pre-litigation asset search investigations are part of counsels legal due diligence and are a preemptive tactic used to determine what assets or income may be seized in the event a judgment is ordered. Subsequent, information can be used to determine if the judicial venture is economically worth the effort. The goal of legal due diligence investigation is to assess the potential benefits and risks of settling a case, selling or buying another business or business assets. There are two main areas of focus in a due diligence investigation;  First, is to determine the current status; Second, what are the consequences of a potential agreement.

Evidence obtained during this process can be admissible in court and used at trial to prepare a better case. A secured position will give a creditor significant leverage over the debtor that may prompt the debtor into a quick settlement.  It may also provide significant protection in the event of a bankruptcy or even prompt the debtor not to file bankruptcy because secured debts are not dischargeable. A court order or judgment does not need to be in place to conduct a pre-judgment asset search. This information is derived from public records. Our principal investigator searches millions of public records to compile the most comprehensive report for our clients. Our pre-judgment assets search are significantly cheaper than an asset search that provides banking or brokerage information. 

Our due diligence investigation of a business or individual’s assets provides information about that business or person’s debts, previous pending lawsuits as part of Pre-Litigation Investigations. Our Pre-litigation asset report includes a comprehensive report that details all public records of property, Real Estate records, liens on the property businesses and their officers, vehicles [depending on the state] Employment, pending claims: How many pending claims? What is the damage estimate? Litigation history: What claims have been paid in the past? Any class action lawsuits? Litigation trends: What types of litigation has the company been involved in? What are the average damage costs?  

PROBATE AND ESTATE DISCOVERY

A Probate Asset Investigator can help counsel, surviving family members, the administrator of the estate or the executor find missing or unknown bank accounts and assist in identifying insurance policies. It is necessary for an estate’s executor to conduct a search for all of the decedent’s assets, including hidden assets, when preparing an estate inventory. The decedent’s important papers will include information about the decedent’s assets, including bank and brokerage statements, stock and bond certificates, life insurance policies, corporate records, car and boat titles, and deeds; and information about the decedent’s debts, including utility bills, credit card bills, mortgages, personal loans, medical bills and the funeral bill. 

Overview of Probate Asset Searches;

• Financial Accounts (Statewide or Nationwide Bank Account Search, Brokerage, Mutual Fund, and Retirement Accounts)
• Life Insurance Policies and Annuity Contracts
• Personal/Family Trusts
• Real Property and Tangible Assets (Motor Vehicles, Aircraft, Boats)
• Business Interests (Including Private Companies, Shell Corporations, and Special-Purpose LLCs)

The individual (or bank or trust company) that is appointed to settle the estate of the testator under a will is called an executor or personal representative.  If there is no will, a person, usually a family member, will be appointed to deal with the decedent’s estate, and the appointed person is called an administrator.

TYPES OF BANK AND BROKERAGE ACCOUNTS WE LOCATE

Stryker has extensive experience in asset search investigation services and provides the legal industry with litigation support services. These are comprehensive programs that include searches for assets such as bank, savings accounts brokerage, stocks, bonds, business partnerships.

These services are typically used as part of pre-trial litigation to formulate a strategic battle plan that can be used as leverage during the course of negotiations or to determine whether a lawsuit is economically worth pursuing.

Stryker Investigation Services Inc. operates in full compliance with debt collection laws, and have made substantial investments in technology to provide our clients with the best-in-class access to relevant debtor information, as allowed by the Consumer Credit Protection Act (CCPA), IRS, Federal Trade Commission, US Department of Labor Garnishment Laws. In order to conduct an asset investigation, the requestor or creditor must have a permissible purpose. A permissible purpose is defined by a legal right to delve into privileged or private information on an individual or business.

Wage Garnishment

In most states, garnishments can be used to recover debts of any type, including credit card and other commercial debts. However, in four states – Texas, Pennsylvania, and North and South Carolina – wages can only be garnished for debts from delinquent taxes, child support, (federally-guaranteed) student loans, and fines that were ordered by the court. In addition, Florida wage garnishment laws provide a “head-of-household exemption” that prohibits the wage garnishment of someone who supplies at least 50% of the support for a child or other dependent.

In 2013 – In a move that may slightly help people facing wage garnishment, California recently enacted a law to raise the exempt amount of weekly pay from wage garnishment to $320 per week, up from the previous $217.50 per week. The $100 increase is certainly needed, as $217.50 per week is below both the federal and state poverty line even for just a single person with no children. 

Bank Levy

When a bank receives a notice of a levy, they must immediately freeze the debtor’s account. In addition to being unable to make a withdrawal, the bank account is frozen, any outstanding checks or automatic debit card payments won’t clear (unless there are enough exempt funds in the account). A federal law that went into effect in May of 2011 requires that banks receiving a garnishment order for an account-holder who receives federal benefits, review their deposits for the last two months to determine if any of these funds were deposited, and are thus exempt. By Federal Law, a bank must wait 21 calendar days after a levy is served before sending payment. The Sheriff holds the funds for 20 more days and then releases on the next business day. Of course, under ideal circumstances, the depositor(s) can waive this waiting period.

Jointly Owned Accounts – Rights and Limitations

When the debtor owns an account jointly with another individual that is not a spouse, the law usually presumes that both individuals each have equal rights to funds held in that account. So, when a creditor attempts to garnish that account, it typically doesn’t have to investigate whether you contributed more money to the account than the co-owner. Unfortunately, for the non-debtor, this could mean that the money in their account could be garnished to pay for the co-owner’s debt, a debt that the non-debtor never owed. Laws vary on the extent to which creditors can garnish joint accounts. In some states, creditors can’t take more than half of the funds in a joint account. However, in other states — like Ohio, Michigan, and West Virginia — creditors may be able to garnish the entire joint account. California law (CCP § 700.160(b)) allows a judgment creditor to collect money from the bank account in the name of the debtor’s spouse even when the debtor’s name is not on the account.

The New Jersey Multiple Party Deposit Account Act (“NJMPDAA”), N.J.S.A. § 17:16I-1, et seq., which governs “multiple-party deposit accounts” (“MPDAs”), including joint bank accounts, provides in relevant part: Unless a contrary intent is manifested by the terms of the contract, or the deposit agreement, or there is other clear and convincing evidence of a different intent at the time the account is created:  a. A joint account belongs, during the lifetime of all parties, to the parties in proportion to the net contributions by each to the sums on deposit. In the absence of proof of net contributions, the account belongs in equal shares to all parties having a present right of withdrawal. 

Community Property States

In the United States, there are nine community property states: Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin. Alaska is an opt-in community property state that gives both parties the option to make their property community property. The rest of the states have adopted what is known as Equitable Distribution Uniform Marriage and Divorce Act §307 (UMDA §307). Under the Equitable Distribution rule, marital property is fairly divided between the parties. Marital misconduct is not a factor in the decision-making process.

Pre-litigation

Pre-litigation asset search investigations are a preemptive tactic used to determine what assets or income may be seized in the event a judgment is ordered. Subsequent, information can be used to determine if the judicial venture is economically worth the effort. Evidence obtained during this process can be admissible in court and used at trial to prepare a better case.

A secured position will give a creditor significant leverage over the debtor that may prompt the debtor into a quick settlement.  It may also provide significant protection in the event of a bankruptcy (or even prompt the debtor not to file bankruptcy) because secured debts are not dischargeable.

There is a variety of reasons an attorney will need to use the services of a private investigator.

1. As part of investigative services for ongoing litigation, civil, criminal, divorce matters…etc;
2. To find assets to use as leverage during the course of negotiations;
3. or to determine whether a lawsuit is economically worth pursuing.

Stryker would like to caution potential clients, with this warning. There is a big difference between the terms “asset search investigation” and “financial investigation.” These are two completely different investigations, requiring completely different professional experts and skillsets.

An asset is an economic resource. Anything tangible or intangible that is capable of being owned or controlled to produce value and that is held to have positive economic value is considered an asset. As such, an asset search investigation is relatively easy to conduct, as the majority of Tangible Assets; (fixed) and are documented in public records. Though Tangible Assets; (liquid) are not a matter of public record and require a permissible purpose to conduct a search.

 Tangible Assets: (fixed) real estate, buildings, homes, equipment and machinery, tools, equity in a property, capital assets, gold and minerals after extraction. Stryker

Tangible Assets: (liquid) current assets and other assets that can be converted to cash, such as liquid assets, bank accounts, money market fund shares, bonds, mutual funds, and the cash value of a life insurance policy. Stryker

On the other hand, a financial investigation is a completely different investigation. At its simplest, a financial investigation tries to determine where the money comes from, how it moves, and how it is used. Also known as forensic accounting, this type of investigation is often crucial when dealing with corporate investigations, theft, embezzlement, money laundering, dishonest employees and can be associated with criminal charges. Investigators analyze all documents that show the paper trail of events involving money with the primary objective of documenting the movement of money.

Tracing funds and activities within companies and across jurisdictions presents complex challenges to which our experts apply their forensic investigative abilities. Stryker team provides financial investigative expertise for class actions, civil litigations, regulatory enforcement proceedings, and white-collar criminal matters.

Citations:

Federal Statute: Title III, Consumer Credit Protection Act (CCPA), 15 USC, §§1671 et seq. / Code of Federal Regulations: 29 CFR Part 870 / Explanatory Brochures and Regulatory Materials Online: www.dol.gov/whd, www.wagehour.dol.gov / U.S. Wage and Hour Division: Fact Sheet #30 – The Federal Wage Garnishment Law, Consumer Credit Protection Act’s Title III (CCPA) / Field Operations Handbook – 02/09/2001, Rev. 644, Chapter 16, Title III – Consumer Credit Protection Act (Wage Garnishment)