Creditor’s Demand for Third-party Claims

Code of Civil Procedure Part 2, Title 9, Division 4, Chapter 5 deals with a creditor’s demand for third-party claims by a secured party or lienholder for the enforcement of judgments in California.

Section 720.510 allows a creditor to make a demand as provided in this chapter that a secured party or lienholder file a third-party claim to personal property that has been levied upon under a writ of attachment or a writ of execution.

Section 720.520 states that the creditor’s demand for a third-party claim by the secured party or lienholder, together with a copy of the demand, must be filed with the levying officer after levy on the personal property but before the levying officer sells the property or pays proceeds of collection to the creditor.

Section 720.530 requires the demand for a third-party claim served on a secured party or lienholder to contain five specified items of information.

Section 720.540 prohibits the levying officer from releasing, selling, or otherwise disposing of the personal property described in the demand before the expiration of 30 days after service of the demand on the secured party or lienholder.

Section 720.550 specifies that, if the secured party or lienholder does not file a third-party claim with the levying officer within 30 days after service of the demand, the secured party or lienholder must be deemed to have waived any priority the security interest or lien may have over the creditor’s lien on the personal property levied upon and the property may be applied toward the satisfaction of the judgment free of the security interest or lien.